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Lobaina Y, Chen R, Suzarte E, Ai P, Huerta V, Musacchio A, Silva R, Tan C, Martín A, Lazo L, Guillén-Nieto G, Yang K, Perera Y, Hermida L. The Nucleocapsid Protein of SARS-CoV-2, Combined with ODN-39M, Is a Potential Component for an Intranasal Bivalent Vaccine with Broader Functionality. Viruses 2024; 16:418. [PMID: 38543783 PMCID: PMC10976088 DOI: 10.3390/v16030418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 02/29/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Despite the rapid development of vaccines against COVID-19, they have important limitations, such as safety issues, the scope of their efficacy, and the induction of mucosal immunity. The present study proposes a potential component for a new generation of vaccines. The recombinant nucleocapsid (N) protein from the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant was combined with the ODN-39M, a synthetic 39 mer unmethylated cytosine-phosphate-guanine oligodeoxynucleotide (CpG ODN), used as an adjuvant. The evaluation of its immunogenicity in Balb/C mice revealed that only administration by intranasal route induced a systemic cross-reactive, cell-mediated immunity (CMI). In turn, this combination was able to induce anti-N IgA in the lungs, which, along with the specific IgG in sera and CMI in the spleen, was cross-reactive against the nucleocapsid protein of SARS-CoV-1. Furthermore, the nasal administration of the N + ODN-39M preparation, combined with RBD Delta protein, enhanced the local and systemic immune response against RBD, with a neutralizing capacity. Results make the N + ODN-39M preparation a suitable component for a future intranasal vaccine with broader functionality against Sarbecoviruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yadira Lobaina
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- R&D Department, Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Yangjiaqiao Street, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
| | - Rong Chen
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
| | - Edith Suzarte
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Panchao Ai
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
| | - Vivian Huerta
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Alexis Musacchio
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Ricardo Silva
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- BCF: R&D Section, Representative Office BCF in China, Jingtai Tower, No. 24 Jianguomen Wai Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100022, China
| | - Changyuan Tan
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
| | - Alejandro Martín
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Laura Lazo
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Gerardo Guillén-Nieto
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Ke Yang
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
| | - Yasser Perera
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- R&D Department, Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Yangjiaqiao Street, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
- CIGB: Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana 10600, Cuba; (E.S.); (A.M.); (L.L.); (G.G.-N.)
| | - Lisset Hermida
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China; (Y.L.); (R.C.); (P.A.); (V.H.); (A.M.); (R.S.); (C.T.)
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co., Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou 425000, China
- BCF: R&D Section, Representative Office BCF in China, Jingtai Tower, No. 24 Jianguomen Wai Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100022, China
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2
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Clever S, Limpinsel L, Meyer zu Natrup C, Schünemann LM, Beythien G, Rosiak M, Hülskötter K, Gregor KM, Tuchel T, Kalodimou G, Freudenstein A, Kumar S, Baumgärtner W, Sutter G, Tscherne A, Volz A. Single MVA-SARS-2-ST/N Vaccination Rapidly Protects K18-hACE2 Mice against a Lethal SARS-CoV-2 Challenge Infection. Viruses 2024; 16:417. [PMID: 38543782 PMCID: PMC10974247 DOI: 10.3390/v16030417] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2024] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The sudden emergence of SARS-CoV-2 demonstrates the need for new vaccines that rapidly protect in the case of an emergency. In this study, we developed a recombinant MVA vaccine co-expressing SARS-CoV-2 prefusion-stabilized spike protein (ST) and SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein (N, MVA-SARS-2-ST/N) as an approach to further improve vaccine-induced immunogenicity and efficacy. Single MVA-SARS-2-ST/N vaccination in K18-hACE2 mice induced robust protection against lethal respiratory SARS-CoV-2 challenge infection 28 days later. The protective outcome of MVA-SARS-2-ST/N vaccination correlated with the activation of SARS-CoV-2-neutralizing antibodies (nABs) and substantial amounts of SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells especially in the lung of MVA-SARS-2-ST/N-vaccinated mice. Emergency vaccination with MVA-SARS-2-ST/N just 2 days before lethal SARS-CoV-2 challenge infection resulted in a delayed onset of clinical disease outcome in these mice and increased titers of nAB or SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells in the spleen and lung. These data highlight the potential of a multivalent COVID-19 vaccine co-expressing S- and N-protein, which further contributes to the development of rapidly protective vaccination strategies against emerging pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina Clever
- Institute of Virology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (S.C.); (C.M.z.N.); (L.-M.S.)
| | - Leonard Limpinsel
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Christian Meyer zu Natrup
- Institute of Virology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (S.C.); (C.M.z.N.); (L.-M.S.)
| | - Lisa-Marie Schünemann
- Institute of Virology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (S.C.); (C.M.z.N.); (L.-M.S.)
| | - Georg Beythien
- Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (G.B.); (M.R.); (K.H.); (K.M.G.); (W.B.)
| | - Malgorzata Rosiak
- Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (G.B.); (M.R.); (K.H.); (K.M.G.); (W.B.)
| | - Kirsten Hülskötter
- Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (G.B.); (M.R.); (K.H.); (K.M.G.); (W.B.)
| | - Katharina Manuela Gregor
- Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (G.B.); (M.R.); (K.H.); (K.M.G.); (W.B.)
| | - Tamara Tuchel
- Institute of Virology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (S.C.); (C.M.z.N.); (L.-M.S.)
| | - Georgia Kalodimou
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Astrid Freudenstein
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Satendra Kumar
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Wolfgang Baumgärtner
- Department of Pathology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (G.B.); (M.R.); (K.H.); (K.M.G.); (W.B.)
| | - Gerd Sutter
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Alina Tscherne
- Division of Virology, Department of Veterinary Sciences, LMU Munich, 85764 Oberschleißheim, Germany; (L.L.); (G.K.); (A.F.); (S.K.); (G.S.); (A.T.)
| | - Asisa Volz
- Institute of Virology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Buenteweg 17, 30559 Hanover, Germany; (S.C.); (C.M.z.N.); (L.-M.S.)
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3
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Ying B, Darling TL, Desai P, Liang CY, Dmitriev IP, Soudani N, Bricker T, Kashentseva EA, Harastani H, Raju S, Liu M, Schmidt AG, Curiel DT, Boon ACM, Diamond MS. Mucosal vaccine-induced cross-reactive CD8 + T cells protect against SARS-CoV-2 XBB.1.5 respiratory tract infection. Nat Immunol 2024; 25:537-551. [PMID: 38337035 PMCID: PMC10907304 DOI: 10.1038/s41590-024-01743-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
A nasally delivered chimpanzee adenoviral-vectored severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine (ChAd-SARS-CoV-2-S) is currently used in India (iNCOVACC). Here, we update this vaccine by creating ChAd-SARS-CoV-2-BA.5-S, which encodes a prefusion-stabilized BA.5 spike protein. Whereas serum neutralizing antibody responses induced by monovalent or bivalent adenoviral vaccines were poor against the antigenically distant XBB.1.5 strain and insufficient to protect in passive transfer experiments, mucosal antibody and cross-reactive memory T cell responses were robust, and protection was evident against WA1/2020 D614G and Omicron variants BQ.1.1 and XBB.1.5 in mice and hamsters. However, depletion of memory CD8+ T cells before XBB.1.5 challenge resulted in loss of protection against upper and lower respiratory tract infection. Thus, nasally delivered vaccines stimulate mucosal immunity against emerging SARS-CoV-2 strains, and cross-reactive memory CD8+ T cells mediate protection against lung infection by antigenically distant strains in the setting of low serum levels of cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baoling Ying
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Tamarand L Darling
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Pritesh Desai
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Chieh-Yu Liang
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Igor P Dmitriev
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Nadia Soudani
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Traci Bricker
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Elena A Kashentseva
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Houda Harastani
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Saravanan Raju
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Meizi Liu
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Aaron G Schmidt
- Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David T Curiel
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Adrianus C M Boon
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Andrew M. and Jane M. Bursky Center for Human Immunology and Immunotherapy Programs, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
| | - Michael S Diamond
- Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Andrew M. and Jane M. Bursky Center for Human Immunology and Immunotherapy Programs, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Center for Vaccines and Immunity to Microbial Pathogens, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
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4
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Handabile C, Ohno M, Sekiya T, Nomura N, Kawakita T, Kawahara M, Endo M, Nishimura T, Okumura M, Toba S, Sasaki M, Orba Y, Chua BY, Rowntree LC, Nguyen THO, Shingai M, Sato A, Sawa H, Ogasawara K, Kedzierska K, Kida H. Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of a co-formulated two-in-one inactivated whole virus particle COVID-19/influenza vaccine. Sci Rep 2024; 14:4204. [PMID: 38378856 PMCID: PMC10879490 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-54421-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Due to the synchronous circulation of seasonal influenza viruses and severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there is need for routine vaccination for both COVID-19 and influenza to reduce disease severity. Here, we prepared individual WPVs composed of formalin-inactivated SARS-CoV-2 WK 521 (Ancestral strain; Co WPV) or influenza virus [A/California/07/2009 (X-179A) (H1N1) pdm; Flu WPV] to produce a two-in-one Co/Flu WPV. Serum analysis from vaccinated mice revealed that a single dose of Co/Flu WPV induced antigen-specific neutralizing antibodies against both viruses, similar to those induced by either type of WPV alone. Following infection with either virus, mice vaccinated with Co/Flu WPV showed no weight loss, reduced pneumonia and viral titers in the lung, and lower gene expression of proinflammatory cytokines, as observed with individual WPV-vaccinated. Furthermore, a pentavalent vaccine (Co/qFlu WPV) comprising of Co WPV and quadrivalent influenza vaccine (qFlu WPV) was immunogenic and protected animals from severe COVID-19. These results suggest that a single dose of the two-in-one WPV provides efficient protection against SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus infections with no evidence of vaccine interference in mice. We propose that concomitant vaccination with the two-in-one WPV can be useful for controlling both diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chimuka Handabile
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Marumi Ohno
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- One Health Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Toshiki Sekiya
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Naoki Nomura
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of International Research Promotion, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Tomomi Kawakita
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Vaccine Immunology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Mamiko Kawahara
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | | | | | | | - Shinsuke Toba
- Shionogi Pharmaceutical Research Center, Shionogi & Company, Limited, Toyonaka, Japan
- Division of Molecular Pathobiology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Michihito Sasaki
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Molecular Pathobiology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Yasuko Orba
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Molecular Pathobiology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Brendon Y Chua
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Louise C Rowntree
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Thi H O Nguyen
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Masashi Shingai
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Vaccine Immunology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Akihiko Sato
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Shionogi Pharmaceutical Research Center, Shionogi & Company, Limited, Toyonaka, Japan
- Division of Molecular Pathobiology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Hirofumi Sawa
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- One Health Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Division of Molecular Pathobiology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Kazumasa Ogasawara
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Katherine Kedzierska
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Hiroshi Kida
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development (HU-IVReD), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.
- Division of Biologics Development, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.
- Division of Vaccine Immunology, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.
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5
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Sathe N, Shaikh S, Bhavsar M, Parte L, Gadiparthi A, Kad S, Sensarma S, Nalband H, Sangapillai R, Sivashanmuganathan S, Pusalkar R, Anandan S, Masand G, Pratapreddy K, Harinarayana Rao S, Gokhale A, Vidyadhar Reddy GEC, Karanam G, Phatarphekar A, Rao P, Ramana V, Ramnath RL. Safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of Relcovax®, a dual receptor binding domain (RBD) and nucleocapsid (N) subunit protein vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 virus. Vaccine 2024; 42:1051-1064. [PMID: 37816655 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/12/2023]
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2, causes coronavirus disease- 2019 (COVID-19). Mostly, COVID-19 causes respiratory symptoms that can resemble those of a cold, the flu, or pneumonia. COVID-19 may harm more than just lungs and respiratory systems. It may also have an impact on other parts of the body and debilitating effects on humans, necessitating the development of vaccines at an unprecedented rate in order to protect humans from infections. In response to SARS-CoV-2 infection, mRNA, viral vector-based carrier and inactivated virus-based vaccines, as well as subunit vaccines, have recently been developed. We developed Relcovax®, a dual antigen (Receptor binding domain (RBD) and Nucleocapsid (N) proteins) subunit protein vaccine candidate. Preliminary mouse preclinical studies revealed that Relcovax® stimulates cell-mediated immunity and provides broader protection against two SARS-CoV-2 variants, including the delta strain. Before conducting human studies, detailed preclinical safety assessments are required, so Relcovax® was tested for safety, and immunogenicity in 28-day repeated dose toxicity studies in rats and rabbits. In the toxicity studies, there were no mortality or morbidity, abnormal clinical signs, abnormalities in a battery of neurobehavioral observations, abnormalities in detailed clinical and ophthalmological examinations, or changes in body weights or feed consumption. In any of the studies, no abnormal changes in organ weights, haematology, clinical chemistry, urinalysis parameters, or pathological findings were observed. Immunogenicity tests on rats and rabbits revealed 100 % seroconversion. Relcovax® was therefore found to be safe in animals, with a No Observed Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL) of 20 µg/protein in rats and rabbits. In efficacy studies, Relcovax® immunised hamsters demonstrated dose-dependent protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection, with a high dose (20 µg/protein) being the most protective, while in cynomolgus macaque monkey study, lowest dose 5 µg/protein had the highest efficacy. In conclusion, Relcovax® was found to be safe, immunogenic, and efficacious in in vivo studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikhil Sathe
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Sameer Shaikh
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Mahesh Bhavsar
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Leena Parte
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Anjaneyulu Gadiparthi
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Satish Kad
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Sayandev Sensarma
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Hassan Nalband
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - R Sangapillai
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - S Sivashanmuganathan
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Rakhi Pusalkar
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Sathyavathy Anandan
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Girish Masand
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - K Pratapreddy
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - S Harinarayana Rao
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Abhiram Gokhale
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - G E C Vidyadhar Reddy
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Gopala Karanam
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Abhishek Phatarphekar
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Praveen Rao
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - Venkata Ramana
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India
| | - R L Ramnath
- Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd., Rabale, Navi Mumbai 400701, India.
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6
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Prakash S, Dhanushkodi NR, Singer M, Quadiri A, Zayou L, Vahed H, Coulon PG, Ibraim IC, Tafoya C, Hitchcock L, Landucci G, Forthal DN, El Babsiri A, Tifrea DF, Figueroa CJ, Nesburn AB, Kuppermann BD, Gil D, Jones TM, Ulmer JB, BenMohamed L. A Broad-Spectrum Multi-Antigen mRNA/LNP-Based Pan-Coronavirus Vaccine Induced Potent Cross-Protective Immunity Against Infection and Disease Caused by Highly Pathogenic and Heavily Spike-Mutated SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern in the Syrian Hamster Model. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.14.580225. [PMID: 38405942 PMCID: PMC10888826 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.14.580225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
The first-generation Spike-alone-based COVID-19 vaccines have successfully contributed to reducing the risk of hospitalization, serious illness, and death caused by SARS-CoV-2 infections. However, waning immunity induced by these vaccines failed to prevent immune escape by many variants of concern (VOCs) that emerged from 2020 to 2024, resulting in a prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. We hypothesize that a next-generation Coronavirus (CoV) vaccine incorporating highly conserved non-Spike SARS-CoV-2 antigens would confer stronger and broader cross-protective immunity against multiple VOCs. In the present study, we identified ten non-Spike antigens that are highly conserved in 8.7 million SARS-CoV-2 strains, twenty-one VOCs, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, Common Cold CoVs, and animal CoVs. Seven of the 10 antigens were preferentially recognized by CD8+ and CD4+ T-cells from unvaccinated asymptomatic COVID-19 patients, irrespective of VOC infection. Three out of the seven conserved non-Spike T cell antigens belong to the early expressed Replication and Transcription Complex (RTC) region, when administered to the golden Syrian hamsters, in combination with Spike, as nucleoside-modified mRNA encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles (LNP) (i.e., combined mRNA/LNP-based pan-CoV vaccine): (i) Induced high frequencies of lung-resident antigen-specific CXCR5+CD4+ T follicular helper (TFH) cells, GzmB+CD4+ and GzmB+CD8+ cytotoxic T cells (TCYT), and CD69+IFN-γ+TNFα+CD4+ and CD69+IFN-γ+TNFα+CD8+ effector T cells (TEFF); and (ii) Reduced viral load and COVID-19-like symptoms caused by various VOCs, including the highly pathogenic B.1.617.2 Delta variant and the highly transmittable heavily Spike-mutated XBB1.5 Omicron sub-variant. The combined mRNA/LNP-based pan-CoV vaccine could be rapidly adapted for clinical use to confer broader cross-protective immunity against emerging highly mutated and pathogenic VOCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swayam Prakash
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Nisha R. Dhanushkodi
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Mahmoud Singer
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Afshana Quadiri
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Latifa Zayou
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Hawa Vahed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
- Department of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA 92660, USA
| | - Pierre-Gregoire Coulon
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Izabela Coimbra Ibraim
- BSL-3 Laboratories, High Containment Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine
| | - Christine Tafoya
- BSL-3 Laboratories, High Containment Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine
| | - Lauren Hitchcock
- BSL-3 Laboratories, High Containment Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine
| | - Gary Landucci
- BSL-3 Laboratories, High Containment Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine
| | - Donald N. Forthal
- BSL-3 Laboratories, High Containment Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Assia El Babsiri
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Delia F. Tifrea
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Cesar J. Figueroa
- Department of Surgery, Divisions of Trauma, Burns & Critical Care, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Anthony B. Nesburn
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Baruch D. Kuppermann
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
| | - Daniel Gil
- Department of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA 92660, USA
| | - Trevor M. Jones
- Department of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA 92660, USA
| | - Jeffrey B. Ulmer
- Department of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA 92660, USA
| | - Lbachir BenMohamed
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
- Institute for Immunology; University of California Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA 92697
- Department of Vaccines and Immunotherapies, TechImmune, LLC, University Lab Partners, Irvine, CA 92660, USA
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7
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Muñoz-Alía MÁ, Nace RA, Balakrishnan B, Zhang L, Packiriswamy N, Singh G, Warang P, Mena I, Narjari R, Vandergaast R, Peng KW, García-Sastre A, Schotsaert M, Russell SJ. Surface-modified measles vaccines encoding oligomeric, prefusion-stabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins boost neutralizing antibody responses to Omicron and historical variants, independent of measles seropositivity. mBio 2024; 15:e0292823. [PMID: 38193729 PMCID: PMC10865805 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02928-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Serum titers of SARS-CoV-2-neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) correlate well with protection from symptomatic COVID-19 but decay rapidly in the months following vaccination or infection. In contrast, measles-protective nAb titers are lifelong after measles vaccination, possibly due to persistence of the live-attenuated virus in lymphoid tissues. We, therefore, sought to generate a live recombinant measles vaccine capable of driving high SARS-CoV-2 nAb responses. Since previous clinical testing of a live measles vaccine encoding a SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein resulted in suboptimal anti-spike antibody titers, our new vectors were designed to encode prefusion-stabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins, trimerized via an inserted peptide domain, and displayed on a dodecahedral miniferritin scaffold. Additionally, to circumvent the blunting of vaccine efficacy by preformed anti-measles antibodies, we extensively modified the measles surface glycoproteins. Comprehensive in vivo mouse testing demonstrated the potent induction of high titer nAbs in measles-immune mice and confirmed the significant contributions to overall potency afforded by prefusion stabilization, trimerization, and miniferritin display of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein. In animals primed and boosted with a measles virus (MeV) vaccine encoding the ancestral SARS-CoV-2 spike, high-titer nAb responses against ancestral virus strains were only weakly cross-reactive with the Omicron variant. However, in primed animals that were boosted with a MeV vaccine encoding the Omicron BA.1 spike, antibody titers to both ancestral and Omicron strains were robustly elevated, and the passive transfer of serum from these animals protected K18-ACE2 mice from infection and morbidity after exposure to BA.1 and WA1/2020 strains. Our results demonstrate that by engineering the antigen, we can develop potent measles-based vaccine candidates against SARS-CoV-2.IMPORTANCEAlthough the live-attenuated measles virus (MeV) is one of the safest and most efficacious human vaccines, a measles-vectored COVID-19 vaccine candidate expressing the SARS-CoV-2 spike failed to elicit neutralizing antibody (nAb) responses in a phase-1 clinical trial, especially in measles-immune individuals. Here, we constructed a comprehensive panel of MeV-based COVID-19 vaccine candidates using a MeV with extensive modifications on the envelope glycoproteins (MeV-MR). We show that artificial trimerization of the spike is critical for the induction of nAbs and that their magnitude can be significantly augmented when the spike protein is synchronously fused to a dodecahedral scaffold. Furthermore, preexisting measles immunity did not abolish heterologous immunity elicited by our vector. Our results highlight the importance of antigen optimization in the development of spike-based COVID-19 vaccines and therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Á. Muñoz-Alía
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Vyriad Inc, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Rebecca A. Nace
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | | | - Lianwen Zhang
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | | | - Gagandeep Singh
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | - Prajakta Warang
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | - Ignacio Mena
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Kah-Whye Peng
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Vyriad Inc, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Imanis Life Sciences, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Adolfo García-Sastre
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- The Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-Based Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | - Michael Schotsaert
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA
| | - Stephen J. Russell
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Vyriad Inc, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Imanis Life Sciences, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
- Division of Hematology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
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8
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Cankat S, Demael MU, Swadling L. In search of a pan-coronavirus vaccine: next-generation vaccine design and immune mechanisms. Cell Mol Immunol 2024; 21:103-118. [PMID: 38148330 PMCID: PMC10805787 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-023-01116-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Members of the coronaviridae family are endemic to human populations and have caused several epidemics and pandemics in recent history. In this review, we will discuss the feasibility of and progress toward the ultimate goal of creating a pan-coronavirus vaccine that can protect against infection and disease by all members of the coronavirus family. We will detail the unmet clinical need associated with the continued transmission of SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV and the four seasonal coronaviruses (HCoV-OC43, NL63, HKU1 and 229E) in humans and the potential for future zoonotic coronaviruses. We will highlight how first-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and natural history studies have greatly increased our understanding of effective antiviral immunity to coronaviruses and have informed next-generation vaccine design. We will then consider the ideal properties of a pan-coronavirus vaccine and propose a blueprint for the type of immunity that may offer cross-protection. Finally, we will describe a subset of the diverse technologies and novel approaches being pursued with the goal of developing broadly or universally protective vaccines for coronaviruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Cankat
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Immunity and Transplantation, University College London, Pears Building, London, NW3 2PP, UK
| | - M U Demael
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Immunity and Transplantation, University College London, Pears Building, London, NW3 2PP, UK
| | - L Swadling
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Institute of Immunity and Transplantation, University College London, Pears Building, London, NW3 2PP, UK.
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9
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Weingarten-Gabbay S, Chen DY, Sarkizova S, Taylor HB, Gentili M, Hernandez GM, Pearlman LR, Bauer MR, Rice CM, Clauser KR, Hacohen N, Carr SA, Abelin JG, Saeed M, Sabeti PC. The HLA-II immunopeptidome of SARS-CoV-2. Cell Rep 2024; 43:113596. [PMID: 38117652 PMCID: PMC10860710 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Revised: 11/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 12/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Targeted synthetic vaccines have the potential to transform our response to viral outbreaks, yet the design of these vaccines requires a comprehensive knowledge of viral immunogens. Here, we report severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) peptides that are naturally processed and loaded onto human leukocyte antigen-II (HLA-II) complexes in infected cells. We identify over 500 unique viral peptides from canonical proteins as well as from overlapping internal open reading frames. Most HLA-II peptides colocalize with known CD4+ T cell epitopes in coronavirus disease 2019 patients, including 2 reported immunodominant regions in the SARS-CoV-2 membrane protein. Overall, our analyses show that HLA-I and HLA-II pathways target distinct viral proteins, with the structural proteins accounting for most of the HLA-II peptidome and nonstructural and noncanonical proteins accounting for the majority of the HLA-I peptidome. These findings highlight the need for a vaccine design that incorporates multiple viral elements harboring CD4+ and CD8+ T cell epitopes to maximize vaccine effectiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shira Weingarten-Gabbay
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Laboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Da-Yuan Chen
- Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Hannah B Taylor
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Matteo Gentili
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Leah R Pearlman
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Matthew R Bauer
- Harvard Program in Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Division of Medical Sciences, Harvard University Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Charles M Rice
- Laboratory of Virology and Infectious Disease, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Karl R Clauser
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Nir Hacohen
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Center for Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Steven A Carr
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Mohsan Saeed
- Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Pardis C Sabeti
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Immunology and Infectious Disease, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD, USA
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10
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Rabdano S, Ruzanova E, Makarov D, Vertyachikh A, Teplykh V, Rudakov G, Pletyukhina I, Saveliev N, Zakharov K, Alpenidze D, Vasilyuk V, Arakelov S, Skvortsova V. Safety and Immunogenicity of the Convacell ® Recombinant N Protein COVID-19 Vaccine. Vaccines (Basel) 2024; 12:100. [PMID: 38276672 PMCID: PMC10821050 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines12010100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
We have developed Convacell®-a COVID-19 vaccine based on the recombinant nucleocapsid (N) protein of SARS-CoV-2. This paper details Convacell's® combined phase I/II and IIb randomized, double-blind, interventional clinical trials. The primary endpoints were the frequency of adverse effects (AEs) and the titers of specific anti-N IgGs induced by the vaccination; secondary endpoints included the nature of the immune response. Convacell® demonstrated high safety in phase I with no severe AEs detected, 100% seroconversion by day 42 and high and sustained for 350 days anti-N IgG levels in phase II. Convacell® also demonstrated a fused cellular and humoral immune response. Phase IIb results showed significant post-vaccination increases in circulating anti-N IgG and N protein-specific IFNγ+-producing PBMC quantities among 438 volunteers. Convacell® showed same level of immunological efficacy for single and double dose vaccination regimens, including for elderly patients. The clinical studies indicate that Convacell® is safe and highly immunogenic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sevastyan Rabdano
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Ellina Ruzanova
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Denis Makarov
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Anastasiya Vertyachikh
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Valeriya Teplykh
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - German Rudakov
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Iuliia Pletyukhina
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | - Nikita Saveliev
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
| | | | - Diana Alpenidze
- State Budgetary Health Institution “City Polyclinic No. 117”, St. Petersburg 194358, Russia
| | - Vasiliy Vasilyuk
- Department of Toxicology, Extreme and Diving Medicine, North-Western State Medical University named after I.I. Mechnikov, St. Petersburg 191015, Russia
| | - Sergei Arakelov
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia (I.P.)
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11
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Ratishvili T, Quach HQ, Haralambieva IH, Suryawanshi YR, Ovsyannikova IG, Kennedy RB, Poland GA. A multifaceted approach for identification, validation, and immunogenicity of naturally processed and in silico-predicted highly conserved SARS-CoV-2 peptides. Vaccine 2024; 42:162-174. [PMID: 38105139 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.12.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 11/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 remains a major global public health concern. Antibody waning and immune escape variant emergence necessitate the development of next generation vaccines that induce cross-reactive durable immune responses. T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 demonstrate higher conservation, antigenic breadth, and longevity than antibody responses. Therefore, we sought to identify pathogen-derived T cell epitopes for a potential peptide-based vaccine. We pursued an approach leveraging: 1) liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)-based identification of peptides from ancestral SARS-CoV-2-infected cell lines, 2) epitope prediction algorithms, and 3) overlapping peptide libraries. From this strategy, we identified 380 unique SARS-CoV-2-derived peptide sequences, including 53 antigenic HLA class I and class II peptides from multiple structural and non-structural/accessory viral proteins. These peptide sequences were highly conserved across variants of concern/interest (VoC/VoIs), and are estimated to achieve coverage of >96% of the world population. Our findings validate this discovery pipeline for peptide identification and immunogenicity testing, and are a crucial step toward the development of a next-generation multi-epitope SARS-CoV-2 peptide vaccine, and a novel vaccine platform methodology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamar Ratishvili
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Huy Quang Quach
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Iana H Haralambieva
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Yogesh R Suryawanshi
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Inna G Ovsyannikova
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Richard B Kennedy
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Gregory A Poland
- Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group, Department of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.
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12
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Wen Z, Fang C, Liu X, Liu Y, Li M, Yuan Y, Han Z, Wang C, Zhang T, Sun C. A recombinant Mycobacterium smegmatis-based surface display system for developing the T cell-based COVID-19 vaccine. Hum Vaccin Immunother 2023; 19:2171233. [PMID: 36785935 PMCID: PMC10012901 DOI: 10.1080/21645515.2023.2171233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The immune escape mutations of SARS-CoV-2 variants emerged frequently, posing a new challenge to weaken the protective efficacy of current vaccines. Thus, the development of novel SARS-CoV-2 vaccines is of great significance for future epidemic prevention and control. We herein reported constructing the attenuated Mycobacterium smegmatis (M. smegmatis) as a bacterial surface display system to carry the spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) of SARS-CoV-2. To mimic the native localization on the surface of viral particles, the S or N antigen was fused with truncated PE_PGRS33 protein, which is a transportation component onto the cell wall of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb). The sub-cellular fraction analysis demonstrated that S or N protein was exactly expressed onto the surface (cell wall) of the recombinant M. smegmatis. After the immunization of the M. smegmatis-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate in mice, S or N antigen-specific T cell immune responses were effectively elicited, and the subsets of central memory CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells were significantly induced. Further analysis showed that there were some potential cross-reactive CTL epitopes between SARS-CoV-2 and M.smegmatis. Overall, our data provided insights that M. smegmatis-based bacterial surface display system could be a suitable vector for developing T cell-based vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and other infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziyu Wen
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Cuiting Fang
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health (GIBH), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China.,Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory of Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Guangzhou, China.,China-New Zealand Joint Laboratory on Biomedicine and Health, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xinglai Liu
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health (GIBH), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China.,Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory of Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Guangzhou, China
| | - Minchao Li
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yue Yuan
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Zirong Han
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Congcong Wang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tianyu Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health (GIBH), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing, China.,Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory of Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Guangzhou, China.,China-New Zealand Joint Laboratory on Biomedicine and Health, Guangzhou, China
| | - Caijun Sun
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China.,Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control (Sun Yat-sen University), Guangzhou, China
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13
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Boulton S, Poutou J, Gill R, Alluqmani N, He X, Singaravelu R, Crupi MJ, Petryk J, Austin B, Angka L, Taha Z, Teo I, Singh S, Jamil R, Marius R, Martin N, Jamieson T, Azad T, Diallo JS, Ilkow CS, Bell JC. A T cell-targeted multi-antigen vaccine generates robust cellular and humoral immunity against SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2023; 31:101110. [PMID: 37822719 PMCID: PMC10562195 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2023.101110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2, the etiological agent behind the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, has continued to mutate and create new variants with increased resistance against the WHO-approved spike-based vaccines. With a significant portion of the worldwide population still unvaccinated and with waning immunity against newly emerging variants, there is a pressing need to develop novel vaccines that provide broader and longer-lasting protection. To generate broader protective immunity against COVID-19, we developed our second-generation vaccinia virus-based COVID-19 vaccine, TOH-VAC-2, encoded with modified versions of the spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) proteins as well as a unique poly-epitope antigen that contains immunodominant T cell epitopes from seven different SARS-CoV-2 proteins. We show that the poly-epitope antigen restimulates T cells from the PBMCs of individuals formerly infected with SARS-CoV-2. In mice, TOH-VAC-2 vaccination produces high titers of S- and N-specific antibodies and generates robust T cell immunity against S, N, and poly-epitope antigens. The immunity generated from TOH-VAC-2 is also capable of protecting mice from heterologous challenge with recombinant VSV viruses that express the same SARS-CoV-2 antigens. Altogether, these findings demonstrate the effectiveness of our versatile vaccine platform as an alternative or complementary approach to current vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Boulton
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Joanna Poutou
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Rida Gill
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Nouf Alluqmani
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Xiaohong He
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Ragunath Singaravelu
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Mathieu J.F. Crupi
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Julia Petryk
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Bradley Austin
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Leonard Angka
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Zaid Taha
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Iris Teo
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Siddarth Singh
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Rameen Jamil
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Ricardo Marius
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Nikolas Martin
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
| | - Taylor Jamieson
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Taha Azad
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1E 4K8, Canada
- Centre de Recherche du CHUS, Sherbrooke, QC J1H 5N4, Canada
| | - Jean-Simon Diallo
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Carolina S. Ilkow
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - John C. Bell
- Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
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14
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Li M, Yang L, Wang C, Cui M, Wen Z, Liao Z, Han Z, Zhao Y, Lang B, Chen H, Qian J, Shu Y, Zeng X, Sun C. Rapid Induction of Long-Lasting Systemic and Mucosal Immunity via Thermostable Microneedle-Mediated Chitosan Oligosaccharide-Encapsulated DNA Nanoparticles. ACS NANO 2023; 17:24200-24217. [PMID: 37991848 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c09521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2023]
Abstract
Most existing vaccines, delivered by intramuscular injection (IM), are typically associated with stringent storage requirements under cold-chain distribution and professional administration by medical personnel and often result in the induction of weak mucosal immunity. In this context, we reported a microneedle (MN) patch to deliver chitosan oligosaccharide (COS)-encapsulated DNA vaccines (DNA@COS) encoding spike and nucleocapsid proteins of SARS-CoV-2 as a vaccination technology. Compared with IM immunization, intradermal administration via the MN-mediated DNA vaccine effectively induces a comparable level of neutralizing antibody against SARS-CoV-2 variants. Surprisingly, we found that MN-mediated intradermal immunization elicited superior systemic and mucosal T cell immunity with enhanced magnitude, polyfunctionality, and persistence. Importantly, the DNA@COS nanoparticle vaccine loaded in an MN patch can be stored at room temperature for at least 1 month without a significant decrease of its immunogenicity. Mechanically, our strategy enhanced dendritic cell maturation and antiviral immunity by activating the cGAS-STING-mediated IFN signaling pathway. In conclusion, this work provides valuable insights for the rapid development of an easy-to-administer and thermostable technology for mucosal vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minchao Li
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Li Yang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Congcong Wang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Mingting Cui
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Ziyu Wen
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Zhiheng Liao
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Zirong Han
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Yangguo Zhao
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Bing Lang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Hongzhong Chen
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Jun Qian
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Yuelong Shu
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
- Key Laboratory of Pathogen Infection Prevention and Control (MOE), State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, National Institute of Pathogen Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 102629, P.R. China
| | - Xiaowei Zeng
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Caijun Sun
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University; Shenzhen, 518107, China
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control (Sun Yat-sen university), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou 514400, China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University; Guangdong 518107, China
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15
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Liu J, Jaijyan DK, Chen Y, Feng C, Yang S, Xu Z, Zhan N, Hong C, Li S, Cheng T, Zhu H. Cytomegalovirus-vectored COVID-19 vaccines elicit neutralizing antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant (BA.2) in mice. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0246323. [PMID: 37971259 PMCID: PMC10883801 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02463-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Cytomegalovirus (CMV) has been used as a novel viral vector for vaccine development and gene therapy. Coronavirus disease 2019 is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is highly mutable and is still circulating globally. The study showed that the CMV viral vector caused transient systemic infection and induced robust transgene expression in vivo. CMV vectors expressing different SARS-CoV-2 proteins were immunogenic and could elicit neutralizing antibodies against a highly mutated Omicron variant (BA.2). The expression level of receptor-binding domain (RBD) protein was higher than that of full-length S protein using CMV as a vaccine vector, and CMV vector expression RBD protein elicited higher RBD-binding and neutralizing antibodies. Moreover, the study showed that CMV-vectored vaccines would not cause unexpected viral transmission, and pre-existing immunity might impair the immunogenicity of subsequent CMV-vectored vaccines. These works provide meaningful insights for the development of a CMV-based vector vaccine platform and the prevention and control strategies for SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Liu
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Minnan Normal University , Zhangzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Dabbu Kumar Jaijyan
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School , Newark, New Jersey, USA
| | - Yanling Chen
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Minnan Normal University , Zhangzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Changcan Feng
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Minnan Normal University , Zhangzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Shaomin Yang
- Shenzhen Municipal Key Laboratory for Pain Medicine, Department of Pain Medicine, Huazhong University of Science and Technology Union Shenzhen Hospital , Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhenglong Xu
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Minnan Normal University , Zhangzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Nichun Zhan
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Minnan Normal University , Zhangzhou, Fujian, China
| | - Congming Hong
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics, National Institute of Diagnostics and Vaccine Development in Infectious Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University , Xiamen, Fujian, China
| | - Shuxuan Li
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics, National Institute of Diagnostics and Vaccine Development in Infectious Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University , Xiamen, Fujian, China
| | - Tong Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics, National Institute of Diagnostics and Vaccine Development in Infectious Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University , Xiamen, Fujian, China
| | - Hua Zhu
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School , Newark, New Jersey, USA
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16
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Rak A, Isakova-Sivak I, Rudenko L. Overview of Nucleocapsid-Targeting Vaccines against COVID-19. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:1810. [PMID: 38140214 PMCID: PMC10747980 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11121810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2023] [Revised: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which emerged in late 2019, is a highly variable causative agent of COVID-19, a contagious respiratory disease with potentially severe complications. Vaccination is considered the most effective measure to prevent the spread and complications of this infection. Spike (S) protein-based vaccines were very successful in preventing COVID-19 caused by the ancestral SARS-CoV-2 strain; however, their efficacy was significantly reduced when coronavirus variants antigenically different from the original strain emerged in circulation. This is due to the high variability of this major viral antigen caused by escape from the immunity caused by the infection or vaccination with spike-targeting vaccines. The nucleocapsid protein (N) is a much more conserved SARS-CoV-2 antigen than the spike protein and has therefore attracted the attention of scientists as a promising target for broad-spectrum vaccine development. Here, we summarized the current data on various N-based COVID-19 vaccines that have been tested in animal challenge models or clinical trials. Despite the high conservatism of the N protein, escape mutations gradually occurring in the N sequence can affect its protective properties. During the three years of the pandemic, at least 12 mutations have arisen in the N sequence, affecting more than 40 known immunogenic T-cell epitopes, so the antigenicity of the N protein of recent SARS-CoV-2 variants may be altered. This fact should be taken into account as a limitation in the development of cross-reactive vaccines based on N-protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Rak
- Department of Virology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, St. Petersburg 197022, Russia; (I.I.-S.); (L.R.)
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17
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e Silva JM, Guimarães JB, Abu Jamra SR, Mirante BS, Capato CF, de Melo Jorge DM, da Fonseca BAL. Administration of an excessive dosage of covid-19 pfizer vaccine in an infant: Case report of clinical and immune responses. Vaccine X 2023; 15:100395. [PMID: 37841655 PMCID: PMC10568082 DOI: 10.1016/j.jvacx.2023.100395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction/Case report We describe the case of a 6-month-old female infant who received the equivalent of 6 adult doses of the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine due to an immunization error. The patient underwent clinical and laboratory evaluations from the time of vaccination error (January 2022) until November 2022. In the first three days after immunization, she presented with low-grade fever (38 °C) and mild pain and induration at the injection site. She showed no other symptoms afterwards. Laboratory tests were within normal limits for age, except for an elevated D-dimer (3.71 ug/mL; normal: up to 0.5 ug/mL) and as the echocardiogram and electrocardiogram were within normal limits as well, no interventions were instituted at that moment. On the tenth day, immune response evaluation showed a strong expression of cytokines related to the Th2 profile and a well-controlled inflammatory state. Forty-three days after the vaccine administration inflammation status remained, with a predominance of cellular immune response, IFN-γ expression increased compared to the previous evaluation, and a robust antiviral state was in place. After 90 days, immune response evaluation showed a significant reduction in the inflammatory state, still with a predominance of the cellular immune response. Clinically, the patient remained well, with no other noteworthy intercurrences, until the last appointment in November 2022. This child has had no evidence of a severe adverse effect associated to the vaccine overdose. Conclusion The close follow-up of this case of vaccination error demonstrated that the COVID-19 Pfizer was safe and immunogenic in this individual, noting careful monitoring and followup of these vaccine administration errors is crucial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorgete Maria e Silva
- Assistant Physician in Immunoallergy, Clinical Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Jhefferson Barbosa Guimarães
- Department of Internal Medicine, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
- Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Soraya Regina Abu Jamra
- Assistant Physician in Immunoallergy, Clinical Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | | | - Carlos Fabiano Capato
- Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Benedito Antônio Lopes da Fonseca
- Department of Internal Medicine, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
- Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
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18
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Yu H, Guan F, Miller H, Lei J, Liu C. The role of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein in antiviral immunity and vaccine development. Emerg Microbes Infect 2023; 12:e2164219. [PMID: 36583642 PMCID: PMC9980416 DOI: 10.1080/22221751.2022.2164219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACTThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused enormous health risks and global economic disruption. This disease is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein is a structural protein involved in viral replication and assembly. There is accumulating evidence indicating that the nucleocapsid protein is multi-functional, playing a key role in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and antiviral immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Here, we summarize its potential application in the prevention of COVID-19, which is based on its role in inflammation, cell death, antiviral innate immunity, and antiviral adaptive immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haiyun Yu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Fei Guan
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Heather Miller
- Laboratory of Intracellular Parasites, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT, USA
| | - Jiahui Lei
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Chaohong Liu
- Department of Pathogen Biology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China, Chaohong Liu
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19
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van Bergen J, Camps MG, Pardieck IN, Veerkamp D, Leung WY, Leijs AA, Myeni SK, Kikkert M, Arens R, Zondag GC, Ossendorp F. Multiantigen pan-sarbecovirus DNA vaccines generate protective T cell immune responses. JCI Insight 2023; 8:e172488. [PMID: 37707962 PMCID: PMC10721273 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.172488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 is the third zoonotic coronavirus to cause a major outbreak in humans in recent years, and many more SARS-like coronaviruses with pandemic potential are circulating in several animal species. Vaccines inducing T cell immunity against broadly conserved viral antigens may protect against hospitalization and death caused by outbreaks of such viruses. We report the design and preclinical testing of 2 T cell-based pan-sarbecovirus vaccines, based on conserved regions within viral proteins of sarbecovirus isolates of human and other carrier animals, like bats and pangolins. One vaccine (CoVAX_ORF1ab) encoded antigens derived from nonstructural proteins, and the other (CoVAX_MNS) encoded antigens from structural proteins. Both multiantigen DNA vaccines contained a large set of antigens shared across sarbecoviruses and were rich in predicted and experimentally validated human T cell epitopes. In mice, the multiantigen vaccines generated both CD8+ and CD4+ T cell responses to shared epitopes. Upon encounter of full-length spike antigen, CoVAX_MNS-induced CD4+ T cells were responsible for accelerated CD8+ T cell and IgG Ab responses specific to the incoming spike, irrespective of its sarbecovirus origin. Finally, both vaccines elicited partial protection against a lethal SARS-CoV-2 challenge in human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2-transgenic mice. These results support clinical testing of these universal sarbecovirus vaccines for pandemic preparedness.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Marcel G.M. Camps
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Iris N. Pardieck
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Dominique Veerkamp
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Wing Yan Leung
- Immunetune BV, Leiden, Netherlands
- Synvolux BV, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Anouk A. Leijs
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Sebenzile K. Myeni
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Marjolein Kikkert
- Department of Medical Microbiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Ramon Arens
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Gerben C. Zondag
- Immunetune BV, Leiden, Netherlands
- Synvolux BV, Leiden, Netherlands
| | - Ferry Ossendorp
- Department of Immunology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, Netherlands
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20
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Yang H, Xie Y, Lu S, Sun Y, Wang K, Li S, Wang J, Liao G, Li C. Independent Protection and Influence of the Spike-Specific Antibody Response of SARS-CoV-2 Nucleocapsid Protein (N) in Whole-Virion Vaccines. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:1681. [PMID: 38006013 PMCID: PMC10675215 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11111681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Of all of the components in SARS-CoV-2 inactivated vaccines, nucleocapsid protein (N) is the most abundant and highly conserved protein. However, the function of N in these vaccines, especially its influence on the targeted spike protein's response, remains unknown. In this study, the immunization of mice with the N protein alone was shown to reduce the viral load, alleviating pulmonary pathological lesions after challenge with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In addition, co-immunization and pre-immunization with N were found to induce higher S-specific antibody titers rather than compromise them. Remarkably, the same trend was also observed when N was administered as the booster dose after whole inactivated virus vaccination. N-specific IFN-γ-secreting T cell response was detected in all groups and exhibited a certain relationship with S-specific IgG antibody improvements. Together, these data indicate that N has an independent role in vaccine-induced protection and improves the S-specific antibody response to inactivated vaccines, revealing that an interplay mechanism may exist in the immune responses to complex virus components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huijie Yang
- Divsion of Respiratory Virus Vaccines, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Beijing 102629, China; (H.Y.); (K.W.); (S.L.)
| | - Ying Xie
- Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Kunming 650108, China; (Y.X.); (S.L.); (G.L.)
| | - Shuaiyao Lu
- Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Kunming 650108, China; (Y.X.); (S.L.); (G.L.)
| | - Yufang Sun
- Graduate School, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 511495, China
| | - Kaiqin Wang
- Divsion of Respiratory Virus Vaccines, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Beijing 102629, China; (H.Y.); (K.W.); (S.L.)
| | - Shuyan Li
- Divsion of Respiratory Virus Vaccines, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Beijing 102629, China; (H.Y.); (K.W.); (S.L.)
| | - Junzhi Wang
- National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, NMPA Key Laboratory for Quality Research and Evaluation of Biological Products, Beijing 102629, China;
| | - Guoyang Liao
- Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Kunming 650108, China; (Y.X.); (S.L.); (G.L.)
| | - Changgui Li
- Divsion of Respiratory Virus Vaccines, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control, Beijing 102629, China; (H.Y.); (K.W.); (S.L.)
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21
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Misplon JA, Lo CY, Crabbs TA, Price GE, Epstein SL. Adenoviral-vectored universal influenza vaccines administered intranasally reduce lung inflammatory responses upon viral challenge 15 months post-vaccination. J Virol 2023; 97:e0067423. [PMID: 37830821 PMCID: PMC10617573 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00674-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Vaccines targeting highly conserved proteins can protect broadly against diverse viral strains. When a vaccine is administered to the respiratory tract, protection against disease is especially powerful. However, it is important to establish that this approach is safe. When vaccinated animals later encounter viruses, does reactivation of powerful local immunity, including T cell responses, damage the lungs? This study investigates the safety of mucosal vaccination of the respiratory tract. Non-replicating adenoviral vaccine vectors expressing conserved influenza virus proteins were given intranasally. This vaccine-induced protection persists for at least 15 months. Vaccination did not exacerbate inflammatory responses or tissue damage upon influenza virus infection. Instead, vaccination with nucleoprotein reduced cytokine responses and histopathology, while neutrophil and T cell responses resolved earlier. The results are promising for safe vaccination at the site of infection and thus have implications for the control of influenza and other respiratory viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia A. Misplon
- Division of Cellular and Gene Therapies, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Chia-Yun Lo
- Division of Cellular and Gene Therapies, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Torrie A. Crabbs
- Experimental Pathology Laboratories, Inc., Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Graeme E. Price
- Division of Cellular and Gene Therapies, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Suzanne L. Epstein
- Division of Cellular and Gene Therapies, Office of Tissues and Advanced Therapies, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
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22
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Chen Y, Hu C, Wang Z, Su J, Wang S, Li B, Liu X, Yuan Z, Li D, Wang H, Zhu B, Shao Y. Immunity Induced by Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine: Breadth, Durability, Potency, and Specificity in a Healthcare Worker Cohort. Pathogens 2023; 12:1254. [PMID: 37887770 PMCID: PMC10610065 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12101254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Revised: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 10/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Vaccination has proven to be highly effective against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), but the long-term immunogenicity and the functional preserved immune responses of vaccines are needed to inform evolving evidence-based guidelines for boosting schedules. We enrolled 205 healthcare workers into a cohort study; all had received three doses of BBIBP-CorV (China Sinopharm Bio-Beijing Company, Beijing, China) inactivated vaccine. We assessed SARS-CoV-2 specific binding antibodies, neutralizing antibodies, and peripheral T and B cell responses. We demonstrated that more robust antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 were elicited by booster immunization compared with primary vaccination. Neutralizing antibody titers to SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.1 were also efficiently elevated post-homologous vaccine booster despite being in a lower titer compared with the prototype stain. In addition to S-specific humoral and cellular immunity, BBIBP-CorV also induced N-specific antibody and effector T cell responses. The third-dose vaccination led to further expansion of critical polyfunctional T cell responses, likely an essential element for vaccine protection. In particular, a functional role for Tfh cell subsets in immunity was suggested by the correlation between both CD4+ Tfh and CD8+ Tfh with total antibody, IgG, B cell responses, and neutralizing antibodies. Our study details the humoral and cellular responses generated by the BBIBP-CorV booster vaccination in a seven-month follow-up study. There is a clear immunologic boosting value of homologous inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine boosters, a consideration for future vaccine strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Chen
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang Hospital, Hangzhou 310003, China;
| | - Caiqin Hu
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China; (C.H.); (J.S.); (X.L.)
| | - Zheng Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
| | - Junwei Su
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China; (C.H.); (J.S.); (X.L.)
| | - Shuo Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
| | - Bin Li
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
| | - Xiang Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China; (C.H.); (J.S.); (X.L.)
| | - Zhenzhen Yuan
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
| | - Dan Li
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
| | - Hong Wang
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang Hospital, Hangzhou 310003, China;
| | - Biao Zhu
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China; (C.H.); (J.S.); (X.L.)
| | - Yiming Shao
- State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China; (C.H.); (J.S.); (X.L.)
- National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China; (Z.W.); (S.W.); (B.L.); (Z.Y.)
- Changping Laboratory, Beijing 102206, China
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23
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Cao J, Gu H, Zhang X, Yun H, Li J, Si CY, Zhang J, Wang H. Intranasal inoculation of female BALB/c mice with replication-deficient human adenovirus type 5 expressing SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein aggravates lung pathology upon re-encountering the antigen. Virus Res 2023; 335:199201. [PMID: 37595663 PMCID: PMC10470087 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2023.199201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 08/20/2023]
Abstract
Preclinical studies indicate that SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N)-based vaccines, along with other viral protein(s), confer protection in various animal models against infection by SARS-CoV-2 ancestral virus and variants of concern. However, the optimal vaccination procedure and the role of N-specific host adaptive immune responses remain elusive. Here, we report that intranasal inoculation with replication-deficient human adenovirus type 5 expressing SARS-CoV-2 N protein (Ad5-N) conferred no protection in the lung of female BALB/c mice upon re-encountering the antigen, either by 10-fold Ad5-N re-exposure or sublethal infection of mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2. By contrast, this procedure led to aggravated lung pathology with more necroptotic CD3+ T cells and Ly6G+ granulocytes, which was associated with the accumulation of IFN-γ-expressing antigen-experienced CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. These findings pre-caution the clinical application of this vaccination procedure. Furthermore, our data suggest that excessive host adaptive immune responses against N protein contributes to COVID-19 pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junxia Cao
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Hongjing Gu
- Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing 100071, China
| | - Xueting Zhang
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Hongfang Yun
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Jiarong Li
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China; University of South China, Hengyang Medical School, Hengyang 421001, China
| | - Chuan-Yimu Si
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Jiyan Zhang
- Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Beijing 100850, China; University of South China, Hengyang Medical School, Hengyang 421001, China; Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China; Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing 102206, China.
| | - Hui Wang
- Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology, Beijing 100071, China.
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24
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Yeung J, Wang T, Shi PY. Improvement of mucosal immunity by a live-attenuated SARS-CoV-2 nasal vaccine. Curr Opin Virol 2023; 62:101347. [PMID: 37604085 DOI: 10.1016/j.coviro.2023.101347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
The effectiveness of early COVID-19 vaccines in reducing the severity of the disease has led to a focus on developing next-generation vaccines that can prevent infection and transmission of the virus. One promising approach involves the induction of mucosal immunity through nasal administration and a variety of mucosal vaccine candidates using different platforms are currently in development. Live-attenuated viruses, less pathogenic versions of SARS-CoV-2, have promising features as a mucosal vaccine platform and have the potential to induce hybrid immunity in individuals who have already received mRNA vaccines. This review discusses the potential benefits and considerations for the use of live-attenuated SARS-CoV-2 intranasal vaccines and highlights the authors' work in developing such a vaccine platform.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason Yeung
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA
| | - Tian Wang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Sealy Institute for Vaccine Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Institute for Human Infection and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA
| | - Pei-Yong Shi
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Sealy Institute for Vaccine Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Institute for Human Infection and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Sealy Institute for Drug Discovery, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Institute for Translational Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA; Sealy Center for Structural Biology & Molecular Biophysics, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA.
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25
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Wellington D, Yin Z, Yu Z, Heilig R, Davis S, Fischer R, Felce SL, Antoun E, Hublitz P, Beveridge R, Dong D, Liu G, Yao X, Peng Y, Kessler BM, Dong T. SARS-CoV-2 mutations affect antigen processing by the proteasome to alter CD8 + T cell responses. Heliyon 2023; 9:e20076. [PMID: 37842619 PMCID: PMC10570596 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e20076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Mutations within viral epitopes can result in escape from T cells, but the contribution of mutations in flanking regions of epitopes in SARS-CoV-2 has not been investigated. Focusing on two SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein CD8+ epitopes, we investigated the contribution of these flanking mutations to proteasomal processing and T cell activation. We found decreased NP9-17-B*27:05 CD8+ T cell responses to the NP-Q7K mutation, likely due to a lack of efficient epitope production by the proteasome, suggesting immune escape caused by this mutation. In contrast, NP-P6L and NP-D103 N/Y mutations flanking the NP9-17-B*27:05 and NP105-113-B*07:02 epitopes, respectively, increased CD8+ T cell responses associated with enhanced epitope production by the proteasome. Our results provide evidence that SARS-CoV-2 mutations outside the epitope could have a significant impact on proteasomal processing, either contributing to T cell escape or enhancement that may be exploited for future vaccine design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dannielle Wellington
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Zixi Yin
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Zhanru Yu
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Target Discovery Institute, Centre for Medicines Discovery, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Raphael Heilig
- Target Discovery Institute, Centre for Medicines Discovery, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Simon Davis
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Target Discovery Institute, Centre for Medicines Discovery, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Roman Fischer
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Target Discovery Institute, Centre for Medicines Discovery, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Suet Ling Felce
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7BN, UK
| | - Elie Antoun
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 7BN, UK
| | - Philip Hublitz
- Genome Engineering Facility, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Ryan Beveridge
- Virus Screening Facility, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Danning Dong
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Guihai Liu
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Xuan Yao
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Yanchun Peng
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
| | - Benedikt M. Kessler
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- Target Discovery Institute, Centre for Medicines Discovery, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Tao Dong
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) Oxford Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 7FZ, UK
- MRC Human Immunology Unit, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, Oxford University, Oxford, OX3 9DS, UK
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26
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Chiuppesi F, Ortega-Francisco S, Gutierrez MA, Li J, Ly M, Faircloth K, Mack-Onyeike J, La Rosa C, Thomas S, Zhou Q, Drake J, Slape C, Fernando P, Rida W, Kaltcheva T, Grifoni A, Sette A, Patterson A, Dempsey S, Ball B, Ali H, Salhotra A, Stein A, Nathwani N, Rosenzweig M, Nikolaenko L, Al Malki MM, Dickter J, Nanayakkara DD, Puing A, Forman SJ, Taplitz RA, Zaia JA, Nakamura R, Wussow F, Diamond DJ, Dadwal SS. Stimulation of Potent Humoral and Cellular Immunity via Synthetic Dual-Antigen MVA-Based COVID-19 Vaccine COH04S1 in Cancer Patients Post Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:1492. [PMID: 37766168 PMCID: PMC10538048 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11091492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell patients are immunocompromised, remain at high risk following SARS-CoV-2 infection, and are less likely than immunocompetent individuals to respond to vaccination. As part of the safety lead-in portion of a phase 2 clinical trial in patients post HCT/CAR-T for hematological malignancies (HM), we tested the immunogenicity of the synthetic modified vaccinia Ankara-based COVID-19 vaccine COH04S1 co-expressing spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N) antigens. Thirteen patients were vaccinated 3-12 months post HCT/CAR-T with two to four doses of COH04S1. SARS-CoV-2 antigen-specific humoral and cellular immune responses, including neutralizing antibodies to ancestral virus and variants of concern (VOC), were measured up to six months post vaccination and compared to immune responses in historical cohorts of naïve healthy volunteers (HV) vaccinated with COH04S1 and naïve healthcare workers (HCW) vaccinated with the FDA-approved mRNA vaccine Comirnaty® (Pfizer, New York, NY, USA). After one or two COH04S1 vaccine doses, HCT/CAR-T recipients showed a significant increase in S- and N-specific binding antibody titers and neutralizing antibodies with potent activity against SARS-CoV-2 ancestral virus and VOC, including the highly immune evasive Omicron XBB.1.5 variant. Furthermore, vaccination with COH04S1 resulted in a significant increase in S- and N-specific T cells, predominantly CD4+ T lymphocytes. Elevated S- and N-specific immune responses continued to persist at six months post vaccination. Furthermore, both humoral and cellular immune responses in COH04S1-vaccinated HCT/CAR-T patients were superior or comparable to those measured in COH04S1-vaccinated HV or Comirnaty®-vaccinated HCW. These results demonstrate robust stimulation of SARS-CoV-2 S- and N-specific immune responses including cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies by COH04S1 in HM patients post HCT/CAR-T, supporting further testing of COH04S1 in immunocompromised populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavia Chiuppesi
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Sandra Ortega-Francisco
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Miguel-Angel Gutierrez
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Jing Li
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Minh Ly
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Katelyn Faircloth
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Jada Mack-Onyeike
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Corinna La Rosa
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Sandra Thomas
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Qiao Zhou
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Jennifer Drake
- Clinical Trials Office, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (J.D.); (C.S.); (P.F.)
| | - Cynthia Slape
- Clinical Trials Office, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (J.D.); (C.S.); (P.F.)
| | - Paolo Fernando
- Clinical Trials Office, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (J.D.); (C.S.); (P.F.)
| | - Wasima Rida
- Independent Researcher, Arlington, VA 22205, USA;
| | - Teodora Kaltcheva
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Alba Grifoni
- Division of Vaccine Discovery, La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; (A.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Alessandro Sette
- Division of Vaccine Discovery, La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; (A.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Angela Patterson
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Shannon Dempsey
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Brian Ball
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Haris Ali
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Amandeep Salhotra
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Anthony Stein
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Nitya Nathwani
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Michael Rosenzweig
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Liana Nikolaenko
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Monzr M. Al Malki
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Jana Dickter
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Deepa D. Nanayakkara
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Alfredo Puing
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Stephen J. Forman
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Randy A. Taplitz
- Division of Infectious Diseases, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (R.A.T.); (S.S.D.)
- Department of Medicine, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA
| | - John A. Zaia
- Center for Gene Therapy, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA;
| | - Ryotaro Nakamura
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Felix Wussow
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Don J. Diamond
- Department of Hematology and HCT, Hematologic Malignancies Research Institute, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (F.C.); (S.O.-F.); (M.-A.G.); (J.L.); (K.F.); (J.M.-O.); (C.L.R.); (S.T.); (Q.Z.); (T.K.); (A.P.); (S.D.); (B.B.); (H.A.); (A.S.); (A.S.); (N.N.); (M.R.); (L.N.); (M.M.A.M.); (J.D.); (D.D.N.); (S.J.F.); (R.N.); (F.W.)
| | - Sanjeet S. Dadwal
- Division of Infectious Diseases, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA; (R.A.T.); (S.S.D.)
- Department of Medicine, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA 91010, USA
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N’Guessan A, Kailasam S, Mostefai F, Poujol R, Grenier JC, Ismailova N, Contini P, De Palma R, Haber C, Stadler V, Bourque G, Hussin JG, Shapiro BJ, Fritz JH, Piccirillo CA. Selection for immune evasion in SARS-CoV-2 revealed by high-resolution epitope mapping and sequence analysis. iScience 2023; 26:107394. [PMID: 37599818 PMCID: PMC10433132 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Here, we exploit a deep serological profiling strategy coupled with an integrated, computational framework for the analysis of SARS-CoV-2 humoral immune responses. Applying a high-density peptide array (HDPA) spanning the entire proteomes of SARS-CoV-2 and endemic human coronaviruses allowed identification of B cell epitopes and relate them to their evolutionary and structural properties. We identify hotspots of pre-existing immunity and identify cross-reactive epitopes that contribute to increasing the overall humoral immune response to SARS-CoV-2. Using a public dataset of over 38,000 viral genomes from the early phase of the pandemic, capturing both inter- and within-host genetic viral diversity, we determined the evolutionary profile of epitopes and the differences across proteins, waves, and SARS-CoV-2 variants. Lastly, we show that mutations in spike and nucleocapsid epitopes are under stronger selection between than within patients, suggesting that most of the selective pressure for immune evasion occurs upon transmission between hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaud N’Guessan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- McGill Genome Centre, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Senthilkumar Kailasam
- Canadian Center for Computational Genomics, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Fatima Mostefai
- Research Centre, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Département de Biochimie et Médecine Moléculaire, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Raphaël Poujol
- Research Centre, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | | | - Nailya Ismailova
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- McGill University Research Center on Complex Traits (MRCCT), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Paola Contini
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa and IRCCS IST-Ospedale San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | - Raffaele De Palma
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa and IRCCS IST-Ospedale San Martino, Genoa, Italy
| | | | | | - Guillaume Bourque
- Canadian Center for Computational Genomics, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Julie G. Hussin
- Research Centre, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Département de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - B. Jesse Shapiro
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- McGill Genome Centre, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Jörg H. Fritz
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- McGill University Research Center on Complex Traits (MRCCT), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Ciriaco A. Piccirillo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- McGill University Research Center on Complex Traits (MRCCT), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Infectious Diseases and Immunity in Global Health Program of the Research Institute of McGill Health Center, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Dahdaleh Institute of Genomic Medicine (DIgM), McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
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Abdelaziz MO, Raftery MJ, Weihs J, Bielawski O, Edel R, Köppke J, Vladimirova D, Adler JM, Firsching T, Voß A, Gruber AD, Hummel LV, Fernandez Munoz I, Müller-Marquardt F, Willimsky G, Elleboudy NS, Trimpert J, Schönrich G. Early protective effect of a ("pan") coronavirus vaccine (PanCoVac) in Roborovski dwarf hamsters after single-low dose intranasal administration. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1166765. [PMID: 37520530 PMCID: PMC10372429 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1166765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has highlighted the danger posed by human coronaviruses. Rapid emergence of immunoevasive variants and waning antiviral immunity decrease the effect of the currently available vaccines, which aim at induction of neutralizing antibodies. In contrast, T cells are marginally affected by antigen evolution although they represent the major mediators of virus control and vaccine protection against virus-induced disease. Materials and methods We generated a multi-epitope vaccine (PanCoVac) that encodes the conserved T cell epitopes from all structural proteins of coronaviruses. PanCoVac contains elements that facilitate efficient processing and presentation of PanCoVac-encoded T cell epitopes and can be uploaded to any available vaccine platform. For proof of principle, we cloned PanCoVac into a non-integrating lentivirus vector (NILV-PanCoVac). We chose Roborovski dwarf hamsters for a first step in evaluating PanCoVac in vivo. Unlike mice, they are naturally susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, Roborovski dwarf hamsters develop COVID-19-like disease after infection with SARS-CoV-2 enabling us to look at pathology and clinical symptoms. Results Using HLA-A*0201-restricted reporter T cells and U251 cells expressing a tagged version of PanCoVac, we confirmed in vitro that PanCoVac is processed and presented by HLA-A*0201. As mucosal immunity in the respiratory tract is crucial for protection against respiratory viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, we tested the protective effect of single-low dose of NILV-PanCoVac administered via the intranasal (i.n.) route in the Roborovski dwarf hamster model of COVID-19. After infection with ancestral SARS-CoV-2, animals immunized with a single-low dose of NILV-PanCoVac i.n. did not show symptoms and had significantly decreased viral loads in the lung tissue. This protective effect was observed in the early phase (2 days post infection) after challenge and was not dependent on neutralizing antibodies. Conclusion PanCoVac, a multi-epitope vaccine covering conserved T cell epitopes from all structural proteins of coronaviruses, might protect from severe disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 variants and future pathogenic coronaviruses. The use of (HLA-) humanized animal models will allow for further efficacy studies of PanCoVac-based vaccines in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed O. Abdelaziz
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martin J. Raftery
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Hematology, Oncology and Tumor Immunology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Julian Weihs
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Gastroenterology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Olivia Bielawski
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Richard Edel
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Julia Köppke
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Julia M. Adler
- Institute of Virology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Theresa Firsching
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Anne Voß
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Achim D. Gruber
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Luca V. Hummel
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ivan Fernandez Munoz
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Francesca Müller-Marquardt
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Gerald Willimsky
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium, Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nooran S. Elleboudy
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Jakob Trimpert
- Institute of Virology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Günther Schönrich
- Institute of Virology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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29
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Lobaina Y, Chen R, Suzarte E, Ai P, Huerta V, Tan C, Alvarez-Lajonchere L, Liling Y, Musacchio A, Silva R, Guillén G, Zaixue J, Yang K, Perera Y, Hermida L. Broad humoral immunity generated in mice by a formulation composed of two antigens from the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. Arch Virol 2023; 168:190. [PMID: 37351679 DOI: 10.1007/s00705-023-05812-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Accepted: 03/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/24/2023]
Abstract
Due to the rapid development of new variants of SARS-CoV-2 as well as the real threat of new coronavirus zoonosis events, the development of a preventive vaccine with a broader scope of functionality is highly desirable. Previously, we reported the functionality of a nasal formulation containing the nucleocapsid protein and the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein of the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 combined with the ODN-39M adjuvant. This combination induced cross-reactive immunity in mucosal and systemic compartments at the sarbecovirus level. In the present study, we explored the magnitude of the immunity generated in BALB/c mice by the same formulation with alum added as an additional adjuvant, to enhance the humoral immunity against the two antigens. Animals were immunized with three doses of the bivalent formulation, administered by subcutaneous route. Humoral immunity was tested by ELISA, and the neutralizing capacity of the resulting antibodies (Abs) was evaluated using a surrogate test and a vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) pseudovirus-based assay. Cell-mediated immunity was also investigated using an IFN-γ ELISpot assay. High levels of antibodies against both antigens (N and RBD) were obtained upon immunization. Anti-RBD Abs with neutralizing capacity reacted with the RBD of three SARS-CoV-2 variants tested, including Omicron. Abs recognizing the nucleocapsid proteins of SARS-CoV-1 and the SARS-CoV-2 Delta and Omicron variants were also detected. Taken together, these results suggest that this bivalent formulation could be an attractive component of a pancorona vaccine able to broaden the scope of humoral immunity against both antigens. This will be particularly important for the reinforcement of immunity in previously vaccinated and/or infected populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yadira Lobaina
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Research Department, Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yangjiaqiao Street, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
| | - Rong Chen
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co. Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Edith Suzarte
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba
| | - Panchao Ai
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co. Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Vivian Huerta
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba
| | - Changyuan Tan
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co. Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Liz Alvarez-Lajonchere
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba
| | - Yang Liling
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Dongguan Ninth People's Hospital, No. 88, Shaditang, Guancheng District, Dongguan, Guangdong, China
| | - Alexis Musacchio
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba
| | - Ricardo Silva
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China
- Scientific Department, Representative Office of BioCubaFarma in China, Jingtai Tower, No. 24 Jianguomen Wai Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100022, China
| | - Gerardo Guillén
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba
| | - Jiang Zaixue
- Guangdong Eighth People's Hospital, No. 68 South, Shilong Xihu 3rd Road, Shilong Town, Dongguan, Guangdong, China
| | - Ke Yang
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China.
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co. Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, Hunan, China.
| | - Yasser Perera
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China.
- Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB), 10600, Havana, Cuba.
- Research Department, Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yangjiaqiao Street, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China.
| | - Lisset Hermida
- Research Department, China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center (CCBJIC), Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, 425000, Hunan, China.
- Scientific Department, Representative Office of BioCubaFarma in China, Jingtai Tower, No. 24 Jianguomen Wai Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100022, China.
- Yongzhou Development and Construction Investment Co. Ltd. (YDCI), Changfeng Industry Park, Yongzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone, No. 1 Liebao Road, Lengshuitan District, Yongzhou, Hunan, China.
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30
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de Moor WRJ, Williamson AL, Schäfer G, Douglass N, Gers S, Sutherland AD, Blumenthal MJ, Margolin E, Shaw ML, Preiser W, Chapman R. LSDV-Vectored SARS-CoV-2 S and N Vaccine Protects against Severe Clinical Disease in Hamsters. Viruses 2023; 15:1409. [PMID: 37515096 PMCID: PMC10383203 DOI: 10.3390/v15071409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Revised: 06/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic demonstrated the need for potent and broad-spectrum vaccines. This study reports the development and testing of a lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV)-vectored vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, utilizing stabilized spike and conserved nucleocapsid proteins as antigens to develop robust immunogenicity. Construction of the vaccine (LSDV-SARS2-S,N) was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and sequencing. In vitro characterization confirmed that cells infected with LSDV-SARS2-S,N expressed SARS-CoV-2 spike and nucleocapsid protein. In BALB/c mice, the vaccine elicited high magnitude IFN-γ ELISpot responses (spike: 2808 SFU/106 splenocytes) and neutralizing antibodies (ID50 = 6552). Testing in hamsters, which emulate human COVID-19 disease progression, showed the development of high titers of neutralizing antibodies against the Wuhan and Delta SARS-CoV-2 variants (Wuhan ID50 = 2905; Delta ID50 = 4648). Additionally, hamsters vaccinated with LSDV-SARS2-S,N displayed significantly less weight loss, lung damage, and reduced viral RNA copies following SARS-CoV-2 infection with the Delta variant as compared to controls, demonstrating protection against disease. These data demonstrate that LSDV-vectored vaccines display promise as an effective SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and as a potential vaccine platform for communicable diseases in humans and animals. Further efficacy testing and immune response analysis, particularly in non-human primates, are warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Warren R J de Moor
- Division of Medical Virology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
| | - Anna-Lise Williamson
- Division of Medical Virology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
| | - Georgia Schäfer
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Africa, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
| | - Nicola Douglass
- Division of Medical Virology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
| | | | - Andrew D Sutherland
- Division of Medical Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University Tygerberg Campus, Cape Town 7505, South Africa
| | - Melissa J Blumenthal
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
| | - Emmanuel Margolin
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Africa, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Biopharming Research Unit, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7701, South Africa
| | - Megan L Shaw
- Division of Medical Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University Tygerberg Campus, Cape Town 7505, South Africa
- Department of Medical Biosciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, Cape Town 7535, South Africa
| | - Wolfgang Preiser
- Division of Medical Virology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University Tygerberg Campus, Cape Town 7505, South Africa
| | - Rosamund Chapman
- Division of Medical Virology, Department of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Observatory, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
- Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa
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31
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Primard C, Monchâtre-Leroy E, Del Campo J, Valsesia S, Nikly E, Chevandier M, Boué F, Servat A, Wasniewski M, Picard-Meyer E, Courant T, Collin N, Salguero FJ, Le Vert A, Guyon-Gellin D, Nicolas F. OVX033, a nucleocapsid-based vaccine candidate, provides broad-spectrum protection against SARS-CoV-2 variants in a hamster challenge model. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1188605. [PMID: 37409116 PMCID: PMC10319154 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1188605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Spike-based COVID-19 vaccines induce potent neutralizing antibodies but their efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 variants decreases. OVX033 is a recombinant protein composed of the full-length nucleocapsid (N) protein of SARS-CoV-2 genetically fused to oligoDOM®, a self-assembling domain which improves antigen immunogenicity. OVX033 including N as an antigenic target is proposed as new vaccine candidate providing broad-spectrum protection against sarbecoviruses. OVX033 demonstrated its ability to trigger cross-reactive T cell responses and cross-protection against three variants of SARS-CoV-2 (B.1 Europe, Delta B.1.617.2, and Omicron B.1.1.529) in a hamster challenge model, as evidenced by lower weight loss, lower lung viral loads, and reduced lung histopathological lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Franck Boué
- ANSES, Laboratory for Rabies and Wildlife, Malzéville, France
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32
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Cacciottolo M, Nice JB, Li Y, LeClaire MJ, Twaddle R, Mora CL, Adachi SY, Chin ER, Young M, Angeles J, Elliott K, Sun M. Exosome-Based Multivalent Vaccine: Achieving Potent Immunization, Broadened Reactivity, and Strong T-Cell Responses with Nanograms of Proteins. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0050323. [PMID: 37093009 PMCID: PMC10269692 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.00503-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Currently approved vaccines against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have focused solely on the spike protein to provide immunity. The first vaccines were developed rapidly using spike mRNA delivered by lipid nanoparticles but required ultralow-temperature storage and have had limited immunity against variations in spike. Subsequently, protein-based vaccines were developed, which offer broader immunity but require significant time for development and the use of an adjuvant to boost the immune response. Here, exosomes were used to deliver a bivalent protein-based vaccine in which two independent viral proteins were used. Exosomes were engineered to express either SARS-CoV-2 delta spike (Stealth X-Spike [STX-S]) or the more conserved nucleocapsid (Stealth X-Nucleocapsid [STX-N]) protein on the surface. When administered as a single product (STX-S or STX-N) or in combination (STX-S+N), both STX-S and STX-N induced strong immunization with the production of potent humoral and cellular immune responses. Interestingly, these results were obtained with the administration of only nanograms of protein and without an adjuvant. In two independent animal models (mouse and rabbit), the administration of nanograms of the STX-S+N vaccine resulted in increased antibody production, potent neutralizing antibodies with cross-reactivity to other variants of spike, and strong T-cell responses. Importantly, no competition of immune responses was observed, allowing the delivery of nucleocapsid with spike to offer improved SARS-CoV-2 immunity. These data show that the StealthX exosome platform has the enormous potential to revolutionize vaccinology by combining the advantages of mRNA and recombinant protein vaccines into a superior, rapidly generated, low-dose vaccine resulting in potent, broader immunity. IMPORTANCE The pandemic emergency has brought to light the need for a new generation of rapidly developed vaccines that induce longer-lasting, potent, and broader immune responses. While the mRNA vaccines played a critical role during the emergency in reducing SARS-CoV-2 hospitalization rates and deaths, more efficient approaches are needed. A multivalent, protein-based vaccine delivered by exosomes could meet this urgent need due to the high speed of development, manufacturability, and the ability to produce a strong antibody response, with neutralizing antibodies and a strong T-cell response able to broadly combat viral infection with a minimum number of injections.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Justin B Nice
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | - Yujia Li
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | | | - Ryan Twaddle
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | - Ciana L. Mora
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | | | | | | | - Jenna Angeles
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
| | | | - Minghao Sun
- Capricor Therapeutics, Inc., San Diego, California, USA
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33
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Weingarten-Gabbay S, Chen DY, Sarkizova S, Taylor HB, Gentili M, Pearlman LR, Bauer MR, Rice CM, Clauser KR, Hacohen N, Carr SA, Abelin JG, Saeed M, Sabeti PC. The HLA-II immunopeptidome of SARS-CoV-2. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.05.26.542482. [PMID: 37398281 PMCID: PMC10312465 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.26.542482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
Targeted synthetic vaccines have the potential to transform our response to viral outbreaks; yet the design of these vaccines requires a comprehensive knowledge of viral immunogens, including T-cell epitopes. Having previously mapped the SARS-CoV-2 HLA-I landscape, here we report viral peptides that are naturally processed and loaded onto HLA-II complexes in infected cells. We identified over 500 unique viral peptides from canonical proteins, as well as from overlapping internal open reading frames (ORFs), revealing, for the first time, the contribution of internal ORFs to the HLA-II peptide repertoire. Most HLA-II peptides co-localized with the known CD4+ T cell epitopes in COVID-19 patients. We also observed that two reported immunodominant regions in the SARS-CoV-2 membrane protein are formed at the level of HLA-II presentation. Overall, our analyses show that HLA-I and HLA-II pathways target distinct viral proteins, with the structural proteins accounting for most of the HLA-II peptidome and non-structural and non-canonical proteins accounting for the majority of the HLA-I peptidome. These findings highlight the need for a vaccine design that incorporates multiple viral elements harboring CD4+ and CD8+ T cell epitopes to maximize the vaccine effectiveness.
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Arieta CM, Xie YJ, Rothenberg DA, Diao H, Harjanto D, Meda S, Marquart K, Koenitzer B, Sciuto TE, Lobo A, Zuiani A, Krumm SA, Cadima Couto CI, Hein S, Heinen AP, Ziegenhals T, Liu-Lupo Y, Vogel AB, Srouji JR, Fesser S, Thanki K, Walzer K, Addona TA, Türeci Ö, Şahin U, Gaynor RB, Poran A. The T-cell-directed vaccine BNT162b4 encoding conserved non-spike antigens protects animals from severe SARS-CoV-2 infection. Cell 2023; 186:2392-2409.e21. [PMID: 37164012 PMCID: PMC10099181 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
T cell responses play an important role in protection against beta-coronavirus infections, including SARS-CoV-2, where they associate with decreased COVID-19 disease severity and duration. To enhance T cell immunity across epitopes infrequently altered in SARS-CoV-2 variants, we designed BNT162b4, an mRNA vaccine component that is intended to be combined with BNT162b2, the spike-protein-encoding vaccine. BNT162b4 encodes variant-conserved, immunogenic segments of the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid, membrane, and ORF1ab proteins, targeting diverse HLA alleles. BNT162b4 elicits polyfunctional CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses to diverse epitopes in animal models, alone or when co-administered with BNT162b2 while preserving spike-specific immunity. Importantly, we demonstrate that BNT162b4 protects hamsters from severe disease and reduces viral titers following challenge with viral variants. These data suggest that a combination of BNT162b2 and BNT162b4 could reduce COVID-19 disease severity and duration caused by circulating or future variants. BNT162b4 is currently being clinically evaluated in combination with the BA.4/BA.5 Omicron-updated bivalent BNT162b2 (NCT05541861).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yushu Joy Xie
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | - Huitian Diao
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Dewi Harjanto
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Shirisha Meda
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Adam Zuiani
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - John R Srouji
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Özlem Türeci
- BioNTech SE, An der Goldgrube 12, 55131 Mainz, Germany; HI-TRON - Helmholtz Institute for Translational Oncology Mainz by DKFZ, Obere Zahlbacherstr. 63, 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | - Uğur Şahin
- BioNTech SE, An der Goldgrube 12, 55131 Mainz, Germany; TRON gGmbH - Translational Oncology at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University, Freiligrathstraße 12, 55131 Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Asaf Poran
- BioNTech US, 40 Erie Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
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35
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Rabdano SO, Ruzanova EA, Pletyukhina IV, Saveliev NS, Kryshen KL, Katelnikova AE, Beltyukov PP, Fakhretdinova LN, Safi AS, Rudakov GO, Arakelov SA, Andreev IV, Kofiadi IA, Khaitov MR, Valenta R, Kryuchko DS, Berzin IA, Belozerova NS, Evtushenko AE, Truhin VP, Skvortsova VI. Immunogenicity and In Vivo Protective Effects of Recombinant Nucleocapsid-Based SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Convacell ®. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:vaccines11040874. [PMID: 37112786 PMCID: PMC10141225 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11040874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2023] [Revised: 04/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The vast majority of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines which are licensed or under development focus on the spike (S) protein and its receptor binding domain (RBD). However, the S protein shows considerable sequence variations among variants of concern. The aim of this study was to develop and characterize a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine targeting the highly conserved nucleocapsid (N) protein. Recombinant N protein was expressed in Escherichia coli, purified to homogeneity by chromatography and characterized by SDS-PAGE, immunoblotting, mass spectrometry, dynamic light scattering and differential scanning calorimetry. The vaccine, formulated as a squalane-based emulsion, was used to immunize Balb/c mice and NOD SCID gamma (NSG) mice engrafted with human PBMCs, rabbits and marmoset monkeys. Safety and immunogenicity of the vaccine was assessed via ELISA, cytokine titer assays and CFSE dilution assays. The protective effect of the vaccine was studied in SARS-CoV-2-infected Syrian hamsters. Immunization induced sustainable N-specific IgG responses and an N-specific mixed Th1/Th2 cytokine response. In marmoset monkeys, an N-specific CD4+/CD8+ T cell response was observed. Vaccinated Syrian hamsters showed reduced lung histopathology, lower virus proliferation, lower lung weight relative to the body, and faster body weight recovery. Convacell® thus is shown to be effective and may augment the existing armamentarium of vaccines against COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sevastyan O Rabdano
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Ellina A Ruzanova
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Iuliia V Pletyukhina
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Nikita S Saveliev
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | | | | | - Petr P Beltyukov
- Scientific Research Institute of Hygiene, Occupational Pathology and Human Ecology of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SRIHOPHE), Kuzmolovsky 188663, Russia
| | - Liliya N Fakhretdinova
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Ariana S Safi
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - German O Rudakov
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Sergei A Arakelov
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Igor V Andreev
- National Research Center Institute of Immunology (NRCII), Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 115522, Russia
| | - Ilya A Kofiadi
- National Research Center Institute of Immunology (NRCII), Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 115522, Russia
- Department of Immunology, N.I. Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Musa R Khaitov
- National Research Center Institute of Immunology (NRCII), Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 115522, Russia
- Department of Immunology, N.I. Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Moscow 117997, Russia
| | - Rudolf Valenta
- National Research Center Institute of Immunology (NRCII), Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 115522, Russia
- Department of Pathophysiology and Allergy Research, Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
- Laboratory of Immunopathology, Department of Clinical Immunology and Allergology, I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Moscow 119435, Russia
- Karl Landsteiner University of Health Sciences, 3500 Krems, Austria
| | - Daria S Kryuchko
- Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 125310, Russia
| | - Igor A Berzin
- Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia, Moscow 125310, Russia
| | - Natalia S Belozerova
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Anatoly E Evtushenko
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
| | - Viktor P Truhin
- Saint Petersburg Scientific Research Institute of Vaccines and Serums of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia (SPbSRIVS), St. Petersburg 198320, Russia
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36
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Bonam SR, Hu H. Next-Generation Vaccines Against COVID-19 Variants: Beyond the Spike Protein. ZOONOSES (BURLINGTON, MASS.) 2023; 3:10.15212/zoonoses-2023-0003. [PMID: 38031548 PMCID: PMC10686570 DOI: 10.15212/zoonoses-2023-0003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
Vaccines are among the most effective medical countermeasures against infectious diseases. The current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has spurred the scientific strategies to fight against the disease. Since 2020, a great number of vaccines based on different platforms have been in development in response to the pandemic, among which mRNA, adenoviral vector, and subunit vaccines have been clinically approved for use in humans. These first-generation COVID-19 vaccines largely target the viral spike (S) protein and aim for eliciting potent neutralizing antibodies. With the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants, especially the highly transmissible Omicron strains, the S-based vaccine strategies have been faced constant challenges due to strong immune escape by the variants. The coronavirus nucleocapsid (N) is one of the viral proteins that induces strong T-cell immunity and is more conserved across different SARS-CoV-2 variants. Inclusion of N in the development of COVID-19 vaccines has been reported. Here, we briefly reviewed and discussed COVID-19 disease, current S-based vaccine strategies, and focused on the immunobiology of N protein in SARS-CoV-2 host immunity, as well as the next-generation vaccine strategies involving N protein, to combat current and emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Srinivasa Reddy Bonam
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA 77555
| | - Haitao Hu
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA 77555
- Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA 77555
- Sealy Institute for Vaccine Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA 77555
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37
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Mendoza-Ramírez NJ, García-Cordero J, Martínez-Frías SP, Roa-Velázquez D, Luria-Pérez R, Bustos-Arriaga J, Hernández-Lopez J, Cabello-Gutiérrez C, Zúñiga-Ramos JA, Morales-Ríos E, Pérez-Tapia SM, Espinosa-Cantellano M, Cedillo-Barrón L. Combination of Recombinant Proteins S1/N and RBD/N as Potential Vaccine Candidates. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:vaccines11040864. [PMID: 37112776 PMCID: PMC10142685 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11040864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 03/29/2023] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite all successful efforts to develop a COVID-19 vaccine, the need to evaluate alternative antigens to produce next-generation vaccines is imperative to target emerging variants. Thus, the second generation of COVID-19 vaccines employ more than one antigen from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to induce an effective and lasting immune response. Here, we analyzed the combination of two SARS-CoV-2 viral antigens that could elicit a more durable immune response in both T- and B-cells. The nucleocapsid (N) protein, Spike protein S1 domain, and receptor binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike surface glycoproteins were expressed and purified in a mammalian expression system, taking into consideration the posttranscriptional modifications and structural characteristics. The immunogenicity of these combined proteins was evaluated in a murine model. Immunization combining S1 or RBD with the N protein induced higher levels of IgG antibodies, increased the percentage of neutralization, and elevated the production of cytokines TNF-α, IFN-γ, and IL-2 compared to the administration of a single antigen. Furthermore, sera from immunized mice recognized alpha and beta variants of SARS-CoV-2, which supports ongoing clinical results on partial protection in vaccinated populations, despite mutations. This study identifies potential antigens for second-generation COVID-19 vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Julio García-Cordero
- Departamento de Biomedicina Molecular, Cinvestav, Av. IPN # 2508 Col, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
| | | | - Daniela Roa-Velázquez
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Cinvestav, Av. IPN # 2508 Col, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
| | - Rosendo Luria-Pérez
- Unidad de Investigación en Enfermedades Oncológicas, Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez, Mexico City 06720, Mexico
| | - José Bustos-Arriaga
- Unidad de Biomedicina, Facultad de Estudios Superiores-Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. De los Barrios # 1, Col. Los Reyes Iztacala, Tlalnepantla 54090, Mexico
| | - Jesús Hernández-Lopez
- Laboratorio de Inmunología, Centro de Investigación en Alimentación y Desarrollo A. C (CIAD) Carretera a la Victoria km 0.6, Hermosillo Sonora 83304, Mexico
| | - Carlos Cabello-Gutiérrez
- Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Respiratorias Ismael Cosío Villegas (INER), Departamento de Investigación en Virología y Micología, Calzada de Tlalpan 4502, Belisario Domínguez, Tlalpan 14080, Mexico
| | - Joaquín Alejandro Zúñiga-Ramos
- Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Respiratorias Ismael Cosío Villegas y Tecnologico de Monterrey, Escuela de Medicina y Ciencias de la Salud, Monterrey 64849, Mexico
| | - Edgar Morales-Ríos
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Cinvestav, Av. IPN # 2508 Col, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
| | - Sonia Mayra Pérez-Tapia
- Unidad de Desarrollo e Investigación en Bioterapéuticos (UDIBI), Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, México City 11340, Mexico
| | - Martha Espinosa-Cantellano
- Departamento de Infectómica y Patogénesis Molecular, Cinvestav, Av. IPN # 2508 Col, San Pedro Zacatenco, México City 07360, Mexico
| | - Leticia Cedillo-Barrón
- Departamento de Biomedicina Molecular, Cinvestav, Av. IPN # 2508 Col, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
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38
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Cavic M, Nesic A, Mirjacic Martinovic K, Vuletic A, Besu Zizak I, Tisma Miletic N, Krivokuca A, Jankovic R, Gavrovic-Jankulovic M. Detection of humoral and cellular immune response to anti-SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 vaccine in breastfeeding women and naïve and previously infected individuals. Sci Rep 2023; 13:6271. [PMID: 37069315 PMCID: PMC10109231 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33516-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023] Open
Abstract
This study explored humoral and cellular responses to anti-SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine in breastfeeding women and naïve and seropositive individuals in the first six months after vaccination.Sixty-one volunteers vaccinated with two doses of the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine were enrolled in the study. In-house developed ELISA was used for the quantification of SARS-CoV-2 RBD-specific antibodies. Cell surface marker expression and intracellular IFN-γ analysis were carried out by flow cytometry. The concentrations of IFN-γ, IL-6 and TNF were determined by ELISA. A significant rise in anti-RBD IgG antibody levels was observed 14 days after the first vaccine dose (p < 0.0001) in serum and milk. The expression of CD28 on CD4+ T cells was significantly higher compared to baseline (p < 0.05). There was a significant increase (p ≤ 0.05) in B cell lymphocyte subset after revaccination, and increased percentage of CD80+ B cells. The expression of IFN-γ in peripheral blood lymphocytes, CD3+ T cells and serum was significantly increased (p < 0.05). No significant difference in immune response was observed between breastfeeding women and other study participants. The anti-SARS-CoV-2 BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine-induced measurable and durable immune response in breastfeeding women and in naïve and previously infected individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milena Cavic
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia.
| | - Andrijana Nesic
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Katarina Mirjacic Martinovic
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Ana Vuletic
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Irina Besu Zizak
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Nevena Tisma Miletic
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Ana Krivokuca
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Radmila Jankovic
- Department of Experimental Oncology, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia, Pasterova 14, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia
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Pieren DKJ, Kuguel SG, Rosado J, Robles AG, Rey-Cano J, Mancebo C, Esperalba J, Falcó V, Buzón MJ, Genescà M. Limited induction of polyfunctional lung-resident memory T cells against SARS-CoV-2 by mRNA vaccination compared to infection. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1887. [PMID: 37019909 PMCID: PMC10074357 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37559-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Resident memory T cells (TRM) present at the respiratory tract may be essential to enhance early SARS-CoV-2 viral clearance, thus limiting viral infection and disease. While long-term antigen-specific TRM are detectable beyond 11 months in the lung of convalescent COVID-19 patients, it is unknown if mRNA vaccination encoding for the SARS-CoV-2 S-protein can induce this frontline protection. Here we show that the frequency of CD4+ T cells secreting IFNγ in response to S-peptides is variable but overall similar in the lung of mRNA-vaccinated patients compared to convalescent-infected patients. However, in vaccinated patients, lung responses present less frequently a TRM phenotype compared to convalescent infected individuals and polyfunctional CD107a+ IFNγ+ TRM are virtually absent in vaccinated patients. These data indicate that mRNA vaccination induces specific T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 in the lung parenchyma, although to a limited extend. It remains to be determined whether these vaccine-induced responses contribute to overall COVID-19 control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daan K J Pieren
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sebastián G Kuguel
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Joel Rosado
- Thoracic Surgery and Lung Transplantation Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alba G Robles
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Joan Rey-Cano
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Cristina Mancebo
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Juliana Esperalba
- Respiratory Viruses Unit, Microbiology Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Vicenç Falcó
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - María J Buzón
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Meritxell Genescà
- Infectious Diseases Department, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca (VHIR), Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Hospital Campus, Passeig Vall d'Hebron 119-129, 08035, Barcelona, Spain.
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40
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Wussow F, Kha M, Kim T, Ly M, Yll-Pico M, Kar S, Lewis MG, Chiuppesi F, Diamond DJ. Synthetic multiantigen MVA vaccine COH04S1 and variant-specific derivatives protect Syrian hamsters from SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants. NPJ Vaccines 2023; 8:41. [PMID: 36928589 PMCID: PMC10018591 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-023-00640-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Emerging SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants continue to disrupt COVID-19 vaccine efficacy through multiple immune mechanisms including neutralizing antibody evasion. We developed COH04S1, a synthetic modified vaccinia Ankara vector that co-expresses Wuhan-Hu-1-based spike and nucleocapsid antigens. COH04S1 demonstrated efficacy against ancestral virus and Beta and Delta variants in animal models and was safe and immunogenic in a Phase 1 clinical trial. Here, we report efficacy of COH04S1 and analogous Omicron BA.1- and Beta-specific vaccines to protect Syrian hamsters from Omicron subvariants. Despite eliciting strain-specific antibody responses, all three vaccines protect hamsters from weight loss, lower respiratory tract infection, and lung pathology following challenge with Omicron BA.1 or BA.2.12.1. While the BA.1-specifc vaccine affords consistently improved efficacy compared to COH04S1 to protect against homologous challenge with BA.1, all three vaccines confer similar protection against heterologous challenge with BA.2.12.1. These results demonstrate efficacy of COH04S1 and variant-specific derivatives to confer cross-protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron subvariants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Wussow
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA.
| | - Mindy Kha
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Taehyun Kim
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Minh Ly
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Marcal Yll-Pico
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | | | | | - Flavia Chiuppesi
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA
| | - Don J Diamond
- Department of Hematology and Transplant Center, City of Hope National Medical Center, Duarte, CA, 91010, USA.
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Carter B, Huang P, Liu G, Liang Y, Lin PJC, Peng BH, McKay LGA, Dimitrakakis A, Hsu J, Tat V, Saenkham-Huntsinger P, Chen J, Kaseke C, Gaiha GD, Xu Q, Griffiths A, Tam YK, Tseng CTK, Gifford DK. A pan-variant mRNA-LNP T cell vaccine protects HLA transgenic mice from mortality after infection with SARS-CoV-2 Beta. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1135815. [PMID: 36969239 PMCID: PMC10033589 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1135815] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Licensed COVID-19 vaccines ameliorate viral infection by inducing production of neutralizing antibodies that bind the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein and inhibit viral cellular entry. However, the clinical effectiveness of these vaccines is transitory as viral variants escape antibody neutralization. Effective vaccines that solely rely upon a T cell response to combat SARS-CoV-2 infection could be transformational because they can utilize highly conserved short pan-variant peptide epitopes, but a mRNA-LNP T cell vaccine has not been shown to provide effective anti-SARS-CoV-2 prophylaxis. Here we show a mRNA-LNP vaccine (MIT-T-COVID) based on highly conserved short peptide epitopes activates CD8+ and CD4+ T cell responses that attenuate morbidity and prevent mortality in HLA-A*02:01 transgenic mice infected with SARS-CoV-2 Beta (B.1.351). We found CD8+ T cells in mice immunized with MIT-T-COVID vaccine significantly increased from 1.1% to 24.0% of total pulmonary nucleated cells prior to and at 7 days post infection (dpi), respectively, indicating dynamic recruitment of circulating specific T cells into the infected lungs. Mice immunized with MIT-T-COVID had 2.8 (2 dpi) and 3.3 (7 dpi) times more lung infiltrating CD8+ T cells than unimmunized mice. Mice immunized with MIT-T-COVID had 17.4 times more lung infiltrating CD4+ T cells than unimmunized mice (7 dpi). The undetectable specific antibody response in MIT-T-COVID-immunized mice demonstrates specific T cell responses alone can effectively attenuate the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our results suggest further study is merited for pan-variant T cell vaccines, including for individuals that cannot produce neutralizing antibodies or to help mitigate Long COVID.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon Carter
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Pinghan Huang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | - Ge Liu
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Yuejin Liang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | | | - Bi-Hung Peng
- Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Anatomy, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | - Lindsay G. A. McKay
- National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Alexander Dimitrakakis
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Jason Hsu
- Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Anatomy, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | - Vivian Tat
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | - Panatda Saenkham-Huntsinger
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
| | - Jinjin Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA, United States
| | - Clarety Kaseke
- Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Gaurav D. Gaiha
- Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT, and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Division of Gastroenterology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Qiaobing Xu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA, United States
| | - Anthony Griffiths
- National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | - Chien-Te K. Tseng
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
- Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology, and Anatomy, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
- Department of Pathology, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, United States
- *Correspondence: Chien-Te K. Tseng, ; David K. Gifford,
| | - David K. Gifford
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- *Correspondence: Chien-Te K. Tseng, ; David K. Gifford,
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42
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Offersgaard A, Duarte Hernandez CR, Feng S, Marichal-Gallardo P, Holmbeck K, Pihl AF, Fernandez-Antunez C, Alzua GP, Hartmann KT, Pham LV, Zhou Y, Gammeltoft KA, Fahnøe U, Schneider UV, Pedersen GK, Jensen HE, Christensen JP, Ramirez S, Bukh J, Gottwein JM. An inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine induced cross-neutralizing persisting antibodies and protected against challenge in small animals. iScience 2023; 26:105949. [PMID: 36644321 PMCID: PMC9829433 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.105949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Vaccines have relieved the public health burden of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and globally inactivated vaccines are most widely used. However, poor vaccination accessibility and waning immunity maintain the pandemic, driving emergence of variants. We developed an inactivated SARS-CoV-2 (I-SARS-CoV-2) vaccine based on a viral isolate with the Spike mutation D614G, produced in Vero cells in a scalable bioreactor, inactivated with β-propiolactone, purified by membrane-based steric exclusion chromatography, and adjuvanted with MF59-like adjuvant AddaVax. I-SARS-CoV-2 and a derived split vaccine induced persisting neutralizing antibodies in mice; moreover, lyophilized antigen was immunogenic. Following homologous challenge, I-SARS-CoV-2 immunized hamsters were protected against disease and lung pathology. In contrast with reports for widely used vaccines, hamster plasma similarly neutralized the homologous and the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant viruses, whereas the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant was neutralized less efficiently. Applied bioprocessing approaches offer advantages regarding scalability and production, potentially benefitting worldwide vaccine coverage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Offersgaard
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Carlos Rene Duarte Hernandez
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Shan Feng
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Pavel Marichal-Gallardo
- Bioprocess Engineering, Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Kenn Holmbeck
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Anne Finne Pihl
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Carlota Fernandez-Antunez
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Garazi Peña Alzua
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Katrine Top Hartmann
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Long V. Pham
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Yuyong Zhou
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Karen Anbro Gammeltoft
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Ulrik Fahnøe
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Uffe Vest Schneider
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark
| | | | - Henrik Elvang Jensen
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Jan Pravsgaard Christensen
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Santseharay Ramirez
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Jens Bukh
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Judith Margarete Gottwein
- Copenhagen Hepatitis C Program (CO-HEP), Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital–Hvidovre, 2650 Hvidovre, Denmark,CO-HEP, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark,Corresponding author
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Maghsood F, Ghorbani A, Yadegari H, Golsaz-Shirazi F, Amiri MM, Shokri F. SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid: Biological functions and implication for disease diagnosis and vaccine design. Rev Med Virol 2023; 33:e2431. [PMID: 36790816 DOI: 10.1002/rmv.2431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 01/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is transmitted by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and has affected millions of people all around the world, leading to more than 6.5 million deaths. The nucleocapsid (N) phosphoprotein plays important roles in modulating viral replication and transcription, virus-infected cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and regulation of host innate immunity. As an immunodominant protein, N protein induces strong humoral and cellular immune responses in COVID-19 patients, making it a key marker for studying N-specific B cell and T cell responses and the development of diagnostic serological assays and efficient vaccines. In this review, we focus on the structural and functional features and the kinetic and epitope mapping of B cell and T cell responses against SARS-CoV-2 N protein to extend our understanding on the development of sensitive and specific diagnostic immunological tests and effective vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Faezeh Maghsood
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Ahmad Ghorbani
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hamidreza Yadegari
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Forough Golsaz-Shirazi
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammad Mehdi Amiri
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Fazel Shokri
- Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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44
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Lobaina Y, Chen R, Ai P, Yang L, Alvarez-Lajonchere L, Suzarte E, Tan C, Silva R, Jiang Z, Yang K, Perera Y, Hermida L. Cross-Reactive Profile Against Two Conserved Coronavirus Antigens in Sera from SARS-CoV-2 Hybrid and Vaccinated Immune Donors. Viral Immunol 2023; 36:222-228. [PMID: 36735580 DOI: 10.1089/vim.2022.0186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the pre-existing immunity against SARS-CoV-2 has been postulated as one possible cause of asymptomatic infections. Later, various works reported that pre-existing immune response against the two structural conserved antigens: S2 subunit and the nucleocapsid protein, were associated to some level of asymptomatic profile in infected individuals. To explore the Ab background against these two antigens, in the context of vaccine-elicited and hybrid (natural infection plus vaccination induced) immunity of SARS-CoV-2, in this work, we tested sera from inactivated vaccine-immunized donors and from vaccinated and subsequent natural infected donors upon the Omicron variant wave in Guangdong province, China. Serum samples were collected from 27 COVID-19 convalescent, 25 SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated, and 10 negative donors. The IgG cross-reactivity response against these two antigens from another relevant human coronavirus (HCoV) was also evaluated. The findings indicate that IgG response against S2 and N protein was particularly higher in sera with hybrid immunity. The cross-reactive Abs were more significant against SARS-CoV-1, while a wide cross-reactivity was detected for N antigen for one human Alpha coronavirus HCoV-229E even in the negative control samples. The presence of cross-reactive Abs against the two conserved antigens N and S2, particularly in the context of hybrid immunity, could pave the way for future boosted vaccines carrying these conserved regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yadira Lobaina
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,CIGB: Vaccines & Pharmaceutics Division, Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba
| | - Rong Chen
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yongzhou, China
| | - Panchao Ai
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yongzhou, China
| | - Liling Yang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Dongguan Ninth People's Hospital, Dongguan, China
| | - Liz Alvarez-Lajonchere
- CIGB: Vaccines & Pharmaceutics Division, Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba
| | - Edith Suzarte
- CIGB: Vaccines & Pharmaceutics Division, Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba
| | - Changyuan Tan
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yongzhou, China
| | - Ricardo Silva
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,BCF: BioCubafarma, Representative Office in China, Beijing, China
| | - Zaixue Jiang
- Guangdong Eighth People's Hospital, Dongguan, China
| | - Ke Yang
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,Yongzhou Zhong Gu Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Yongzhou, China
| | - Yasser Perera
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,CIGB: Vaccines & Pharmaceutics Division, Biomedical Research Department, Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Havana, Cuba
| | - Lisset Hermida
- CCBJIC: China-Cuba Biotechnology Joint Innovation Center, Yongzhou, China.,BCF: BioCubafarma, Representative Office in China, Beijing, China
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45
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Brady C, Tipton T, Longet S, Carroll MW. Pre-clinical models to define correlates of protection for SARS-CoV-2. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1166664. [PMID: 37063834 PMCID: PMC10097995 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1166664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023] Open
Abstract
A defined immune profile that predicts protection against a pathogen-of-interest, is referred to as a correlate of protection (CoP). A validated SARS-CoV-2 CoP has yet to be defined, however considerable insights have been provided by pre-clinical vaccine and animal rechallenge studies which have fewer associated limitations than equivalent studies in human vaccinees or convalescents, respectively. This literature review focuses on the advantages of the use of animal models for the definition of CoPs, with particular attention on their application in the search for SARS-CoV-2 CoPs. We address the conditions and interventions required for the identification and validation of a CoP, which are often only made possible with the use of appropriate in vivo models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caolann Brady
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics and Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- *Correspondence: Caolann Brady, ; Miles W. Carroll,
| | - Tom Tipton
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics and Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Stephanie Longet
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics and Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- International Center for Infectiology Research (CIRI), Team GIMAP, Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University, Inserm, U1111, CNRS, UMR530, Saint-Etienne, France
| | - Miles W. Carroll
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics and Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- *Correspondence: Caolann Brady, ; Miles W. Carroll,
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An Immunological Review of SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Vaccine Serology: Innate and Adaptive Responses to mRNA, Adenovirus, Inactivated and Protein Subunit Vaccines. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 11:vaccines11010051. [PMID: 36679897 PMCID: PMC9865970 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11010051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, which is defined by its positive-sense single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) structure. It is in the order Nidovirales, suborder Coronaviridae, genus Betacoronavirus, and sub-genus Sarbecovirus (lineage B), together with two bat-derived strains with a 96% genomic homology with other bat coronaviruses (BatCoVand RaTG13). Thus far, two Alphacoronavirus strains, HCoV-229E and HCoV-NL63, along with five Betacoronaviruses, HCoV-HKU1, HCoV-OC43, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2, have been recognized as human coronaviruses (HCoVs). SARS-CoV-2 has resulted in more than six million deaths worldwide since late 2019. The appearance of this novel virus is defined by its high and variable transmission rate (RT) and coexisting asymptomatic and symptomatic propagation within and across animal populations, which has a longer-lasting impact. Most current therapeutic methods aim to reduce the severity of COVID-19 hospitalization and virus symptoms, preventing the infection from progressing from acute to chronic in vulnerable populations. Now, pharmacological interventions including vaccines and others exist, with research ongoing. The only ethical approach to developing herd immunity is to develop and provide vaccines and therapeutics that can potentially improve on the innate and adaptive system responses at the same time. Therefore, several vaccines have been developed to provide acquired immunity to SARS-CoV-2 induced COVID-19-disease. The initial evaluations of the COVID-19 vaccines began in around 2020, followed by clinical trials carried out during the pandemic with ongoing population adverse effect monitoring by respective regulatory agencies. Therefore, durability and immunity provided by current vaccines requires further characterization with more extensive available data, as is presented in this paper. When utilized globally, these vaccines may create an unidentified pattern of antibody responses or memory B and T cell responses that need to be further researched, some of which can now be compared within laboratory and population studies here. Several COVID-19 vaccine immunogens have been presented in clinical trials to assess their safety and efficacy, inducing cellular antibody production through cellular B and T cell interactions that protect against infection. This response is defined by virus-specific antibodies (anti-N or anti-S antibodies), with B and T cell characterization undergoing extensive research. In this article, we review four types of contemporary COVID-19 vaccines, comparing their antibody profiles and cellular aspects involved in coronavirus immunology across several population studies.
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Hasanpourghadi M, Novikov M, Ambrose R, Chekaoui A, Newman D, Ding J, Giles-Davis W, Xiang Z, Zhou XY, Liu Q, Swagata K, Ertl HCJ. Heterologous chimpanzee adenovirus vector immunizations for SARS-CoV-2 spike and nucleocapsid protect hamsters against COVID-19. Microbes Infect 2022; 25:105082. [PMID: 36539010 PMCID: PMC9758783 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2022.105082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Available COVID-19 vaccine only provide protection for a limited time due in part to the rapid emergence of viral variants with spike protein mutations, necessitating the generation of new vaccines to combat SARS-CoV-2. Two serologically distinct replication-defective chimpanzee-origin adenovirus (Ad) vectors (AdC) called AdC6 and AdC7 expressing early SARS-CoV-2 isolate spike (S) or nucleocapsid (N) proteins, the latter expressed as a fusion protein within herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D (gD), were tested individually or as a mixture in a hamster COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 challenge model. The S protein expressing AdC (AdC-S) vectors induced antibodies including those with neutralizing activity that in part cross-reacted with viral variants. Hamsters vaccinated with the AdC-S vectors were protected against serious disease and showed accelerated recovery upon SARS-CoV-2 challenge. Protection was enhanced if AdC-S vectors were given together with the AdC vaccines that expressed the gD N fusion protein (AdC-gDN). In contrast hamsters that just received the AdC-gDN vaccines showed only marginal lessening of symptoms compared to control animals. These results indicate that immune response to the N protein that is less variable than the S protein may potentiate and prolong protection achieved by the currently used S protein based genetic COVID-19 vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mikhail Novikov
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Robert Ambrose
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Arezki Chekaoui
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Dakota Newman
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Jianyi Ding
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | | | - Zhiquan Xiang
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Xiang Yang Zhou
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Qin Liu
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kar Swagata
- Bioqual Inc., 9600 Medical Center Dr #101, Rockville, MD 20850
| | - Hildegund CJ. Ertl
- The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA,Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 215-898-3863
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48
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Muñoz-Alía MÁ, Nace RA, Balakrishnan B, Zhang L, Packiriswamy N, Singh G, Warang P, Mena I, Narjari R, Vandergaast R, García-Sastre A, Schotsaert M, Russell SJ. Surface-modified measles vaccines encoding oligomeric, fusion-stabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins bypass measles seropositivity, boosting neutralizing antibody responses to omicron and historical variants. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2022:2022.12.16.520799. [PMID: 36561187 PMCID: PMC9774211 DOI: 10.1101/2022.12.16.520799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/11/2023]
Abstract
Serum titers of SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies (nAb) correlate well with protection from symptomatic COVID-19, but decay rapidly in the months following vaccination or infection. In contrast, measles-protective nAb titers are life-long after measles vaccination, possibly due to persistence of the live-attenuated virus in lymphoid tissues. We therefore sought to generate a live recombinant measles vaccine capable of driving high SARS-CoV-2 nAb responses. Since previous clinical testing of a live measles vaccine encoding a SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein resulted in suboptimal anti-spike antibody titers, our new vectors were designed to encode prefusion-stabilized SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoproteins, trimerized via an inserted peptide domain and displayed on a dodecahedral miniferritin scaffold. Additionally, to circumvent the blunting of vaccine efficacy by preformed anti-measles antibodies, we extensively modified the measles surface glycoproteins. Comprehensive in vivo mouse testing demonstrated potent induction of high titer nAb in measles-immune mice and confirmed the significant incremental contributions to overall potency afforded by prefusion stabilization, trimerization, and miniferritin-display of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein, and vaccine resurfacing. In animals primed and boosted with a MeV vaccine encoding the ancestral SARS-CoV-2 spike, high titer nAb responses against ancestral virus strains were only weakly cross-reactive with the omicron variant. However, in primed animals that were boosted with a MeV vaccine encoding the omicron BA.1 spike, antibody titers to both ancestral and omicron strains were robustly elevated and the passive transfer of serum from these animals protected K18-ACE2 mice from infection and morbidity after exposure to BA.1 and WA1/2020 strains. Our results demonstrate that antigen engineering can enable the development of potent measles-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Á. Muñoz-Alía
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
- Vyriad Inc, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Rebecca A. Nace
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | | | - Lianwen Zhang
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | | | - Gagandeep Singh
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Prajakta Warang
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ignacio Mena
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Adolfo García-Sastre
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- The Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Pathology, Molecular and Cell-Based Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michael Schotsaert
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Stephen J. Russell
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
- Vyriad Inc, Rochester, MN, USA
- Department of Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Imanis Life Sciences, Rochester, MN, USA
- Division of Hematology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
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49
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Dangi T, Sanchez S, Class J, Richner M, Visvabharathy L, Chung YR, Bentley K, Stanton RJ, Koralnik IJ, Richner JM, Penaloza-MacMaster P. Improved control of SARS-CoV-2 by treatment with a nucleocapsid-specific monoclonal antibody. J Clin Invest 2022; 132:162282. [PMID: 36219482 PMCID: PMC9711872 DOI: 10.1172/jci162282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein is the main antigen in all approved COVID-19 vaccines and is also the only target for monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapies. Immune responses to other viral antigens are generated after SARS-CoV-2 infection, but their contribution to the antiviral response remains unclear. Here, we interrogated whether nucleocapsid-specific antibodies can improve protection against SARS-CoV-2. We first immunized mice with a nucleocapsid-based vaccine and then transferred sera from these mice into naive mice, followed by challenge with SARS-CoV-2. We show that mice that received nucleocapsid-specific sera or a nucleocapsid-specific mAb exhibited enhanced control of SARS-CoV-2. Nucleocapsid-specific antibodies elicited NK-mediated, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) against infected cells. To our knowledge, these findings provide the first demonstration in the coronavirus literature that antibody responses specific to the nucleocapsid protein can improve viral clearance, providing a rationale for the clinical evaluation of nucleocapsid-based mAb therapies to treat COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanushree Dangi
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Sarah Sanchez
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Jacob Class
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Michelle Richner
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Lavanya Visvabharathy
- Ken and Ruth Davee Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Young Rock Chung
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Kirsten Bentley
- Division of Infection and Immunity, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | - Richard J Stanton
- Division of Infection and Immunity, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | - Igor J Koralnik
- Ken and Ruth Davee Department of Neurology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Justin M Richner
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Pablo Penaloza-MacMaster
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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50
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Fiorino S, Carusi A, Hong W, Cernuschi P, Gallo CG, Ferrara E, Maloberti T, Visani M, Lari F, de Biase D, Zippi M. SARS-CoV-2 vaccines: What we know, what we can do to improve them and what we could learn from other well-known viruses. AIMS Microbiol 2022; 8:422-453. [PMID: 36694588 PMCID: PMC9834075 DOI: 10.3934/microbiol.2022029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 11/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent weeks, the rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections has been progressively increasing all over the globe, even in countries where vaccination programs have been strongly implemented. In these regions in 2021, a reduction in the number of hospitalizations and deaths compared to 2020 was observed. This decrease is certainly associated with the introduction of vaccination measures. The process of the development of effective vaccines represents an important challenge. Overall, the breakthrough infections occurring in vaccinated subjects are in most cases less severe than those observed in unvaccinated individuals. This review examines the factors affecting the immunogenicity of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and the possible role of nutrients in modulating the response of distinct immune cells to the vaccination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sirio Fiorino
- Internal Medicine Unit, Budrio Hospital, Budrio (Bologna), Azienda USL, Bologna, Italy,* Correspondence:
| | - Andrea Carusi
- Internal Medicine Unit, Budrio Hospital, Budrio (Bologna), Azienda USL, Bologna, Italy
| | - Wandong Hong
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang, The People's Republic of China
| | - Paolo Cernuschi
- Internal Medicine Unit, Quisana Private Hospital, Ferrara, Italy
| | | | | | - Thais Maloberti
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, University of Bologna-Molecular Diagnostic Unit, Azienda USL di Bologna, Bologna, Italy,Solid Tumor Molecular Pathology Laboratory, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Michela Visani
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, University of Bologna-Molecular Diagnostic Unit, Azienda USL di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Federico Lari
- Internal Medicine Unit, Budrio Hospital, Budrio (Bologna), Azienda USL, Bologna, Italy
| | - Dario de Biase
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy,Solid Tumor Molecular Pathology Laboratory, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Maddalena Zippi
- Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, Sandro Pertini Hospital, Rome, Italy
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